inFAMOUS: Slack Line
by AptDeltoid
Summary: Just as Delsin Rowe is ready to face Augustine, a new conduit has been discovered in Seattle possessing Wire abilities. Delsin, being the greedy boy he is, thinks it would be worth him gaining those powers, but could the group end up gaining more than they bargained for?
1. Prologue

"Oh, Seattle. Don't I just love your sunsets on our D.U.P. free streets," the young man sighed, standing atop the structural beauty that was Space Needle. He could see everything from here, albeit not very well. Still, he was content with the progress he had made in clearing out the D.U.P.'s from the gorgeous city. There were only a couple of Districts left, nothing too troublesome. Stepping towards the edge of the ledge in which he was currently perched on, a smile stretched across the Akomish boy's face before he let himself fall off the edge.

Delsin had trouble remembering how many days it had been since he had acquired his _powers_. And yet, in such a short amount of time, so much had changed. Here he was, soaring through the air like a canon. One of the perks of his abilities was his extreme strength and endurance. Landing was too easy despite how many hundreds of feet he had fallen. The smoke surged through his veins all the way to the tips of his fingers, waiting idle until he might need them again, which was inevitable. Delsin was on a mission of sorts, one that would require him to let go of things he would rather not lose. But it was at a price, and that price was the lives of the people from his tribe. It was his responsibility to heal them, a promise he had to keep, and he was prepared to go to all lengths to do this.

With his smoke abilities alone, Delsin had a small chance of defeating Augustine, the concrete bitch that tried to put his people on their deathbeds much too early. He had recently absorbed two new types of powers - neon and video - which made him insanely powerful. He was pretty much ready to face her when a vibration in his pocket cut him out of his optimistic vibe. Reaching for his smartphone, he looked only to find an incoming call from his older brother.

"Whaddup, Reg?"

"You sound excited," Reggie's voice was low, his breath heavy.

"Hell yeah, I'm ready to go and defeat this _bitch_!" Delsin was jumping as he talked, punching the air around him.

"Listen to me, Del. I'm calling to let you know that we've found ourselves a slight… problem over here at the police department."

"Problem? What kind of problem is big enough to interrupt this?" Angry, Delsin's voice was sharp and unforgiving.

He could hear Reggie scoff over the line before continuing, "This one. I was talking to a few of the guys here and, well-"

"Well?"

"Alright, alright, don't cut me off like that! We think there's another bio-terro-"

"_Conduit_."

"Conduit, yes. We're pretty sure there's another Conduit in Seattle right now. One that has power over Wire."

"_Another_ conduit?! Are you sure?" Delsin scratched at the back of his neck in frustration.

"Pretty damn certain. People have been sending in complaints about power lines on the road and thick electrical wires up walls and stuff. Similar to Laser Show's work. At first we thought it was just the result of D.U.P. destruction and such, but it's kind of all around the place now. Someone's trying to get themselves known."

"Known? By who? The Dups? Augustine?" Delsin's confusion was obvious.

"_Banner Man_," Reggie replied with a chuckle.

"Shut up, Reg. I'll check it out. Later." Ending the call, Delsin shoved the phone into his pocket before leaping up a brick wall and darting towards an air vent. Before he knew it, it was atop the building and overlooking the city once more. A sigh of relief left his lips before he sprung into action, eyes darting all around him in hopes of finding any clues that could lead him to the newest conduit.

* * *

><p>Okay! So, I hope you enjoyed this little prologue into the story. Doesn't really set much in the category for time and place, but that'll all be shown in the next chapter. Until next time!<p> 


	2. Banner Boy

Two days had passed and Delsin still had nothing to help him find his new mystery Conduit. He tried listening into the news broadcasts to see if they had any abnormal events to report, but they just spewed the same old _"Don't trust Bio-terrorists. They are here to kill you"_ crap.

Sticking his hand into his jeans pocket and pulling out his phone, Delsin decided it was time to get some help. "Fetch! Hey, what's up?" he spoke into the phone quickly.

"Hey, D. Not much, you?" her voice was crackly and dry. No doubt she had just finished a busy day doing what she did best: taking out druggies.

"Yeah, not much. Hey, can I meet you and Teen Angel at the base of Space Needle in about twenty minutes?"

"Sure, see you then." The phone clicked, before Delsin dialled Eugene.

"Hey, Eugene. Can I meet you at the bottom of Space Needle in about twenty? I need some help."

"Okay, bye." Eugene was as talkative as ever.

Hopping by rooftop made the journey much easier, cutting it down to merely ten minutes. Eugene and Fetch were already there, standing near each other but not making conversation. As Delsin walked towards them, they stood upright and waved in greeting.

Delsin slipped his hands into his pockets, rolling his shoulders and relaxing himself. "Alright, guys, so Reggie gave me a call a couple of days ago letting me know about a possibility of a local conduit that might be worth checking out."

Fetch chuckled, rolling back on her heels, "So?"

"So," Delsin clapped his hands together, drawing out his words, "I am in need of some assistance. It seems that the signs of the conduit move around the city in a rotation, based on what my brother has told me. I was thinking maybe you guys could give me a bit of a hand, help me kind of sneak on them. I think they can track me somehow, who knows. Either way, it would be totally sweet if you guys could help me out with it?"

The two conduits shrugged in unison, not having much else to do and so agreed.

"Wow, D. If you can't find this guy in two days then I'm a little worried," Fetch joked, "Where should we go first?"

Throughout the past two days, Delsin had Reggie on speed dial so that he could get information on the wires as quickly as possible. After hearing complaints of wires around Seattle, Reggie had people positioned all over the place to try and see what they could find, and they found that the wires snaked around the city like a clock, switching districts on the hour. However, they disappeared whenever Delsin or Reggie would approach them. Having Abigail and Eugene around meant that tracking down the wires would be much easier, but they would have to be quick before the Wire conduit realised they were on his path.

"Hey, Delsin. I think I found something over at Pioneer Square," Eugene whispered through his phone's microphone as to not create any suspicion.

"Nice! Get Fetch over there and try isolate the area. When I see she's there, I'll take the sky. We want nothing going in, and no one getting out."

"Gotcha," Eugene murmured, the phone clicking.

A smug grin stretched across Delsin's face, brows furrowing, "Alright, conduit, let's see what makes you _tick_." A neon strip dashed past him at that, letting him know where the conduit was hiding. Delsin kept an eye on the trail, moving adjacent to it. Two people moving quickly in the direction of the conduit would surely scare them off, and so it was decided that none of the three would move together when in close proximity.

Delsin stood on the lip of a smoke stack, peering down at the ground below. He could see thick black wires, pulsing with white energy like blood in the veins. He followed them from a few feet away, dashing from rooftop to rooftop. A quick glance at the ground was all he needed as they carried bulbs of white light that flowed quickly. Delsin paused on the edge of a building, looking down to the ground. People were noticing the wires, questioning them. He heard someone suggest a bio-terrorist as another leant down to touch the wire. They were only inches away when the wires were sucked back in a flash.

"We have movement," Delsin shouted, getting the attention of Eugene. Delsin was alert, running quickly to try and stop the conduit from escaping. "Oh, no. You are not getting away this time," he muttered under his breath as he picked up speed. He could see the wires snaking towards an intersection in an alleyway. One foot in front of the other, he leaped off the roof and straight to the ground. As his eyes adjusted, he saw a person standing in the centre, surrounded by wires like a spherical cage. Adrenaline was pumping through his body, his heart was in his throat.

Eugene, Fetch and Delsin surrounded the cage at the three entrances to the intersection. They could partially see inside the cage, the area illuminated only by Fetch and Eugene's powers. Inside held what was assumed to be a victim of the conduit, they were curled up in the fetal position, shaking. Fetch walked towards the cage hesitantly, arm outstretched to touch the wires. Before she could, the wires dispersed and vanished into drains. While Fetch checked to see if the victim was unharmed, Delsin peered into the drain the wires had moved into. He removed the grate and stuck his head inside.

The walls of the drains were illuminated with wires, the same that he had followed only minutes ago. They lined every visible inch of the drains, pulsing with the same white orbs flowing into a direction away from him.

Fresh wounds and cuts covered the victim's body. A shallow gash and purple bruising lined their neck, showing where the victim had been choked and rendered speechless. Eugene moved to help the victim and try find any information he could.

"D, come and check this out," Abigail's voice interrupted Delsin's search, pointing to one of the brick walls, "Looks like we have ourselves another artist."

Written in capital letters across the bricks in wire was "_WHERE FOR ART THOU BANNER BOY?_". Delsin looked in shock, searching around for any clues. The wire had no traces of white energy pulsing through, meaning it was not connected to the conduit.

"Oh, my God," Delsin wrinkled his nose in disgust, "I've been demoted to _Boy_!"

Fetch gave a low-belly laugh as Eugene moved closer to the tag. He pointed out three small letters towards the bottom right of the sign, "'_CMN'_? What does _CMN_ mean?"

By now, Delsin's jaw was on the ground, "No way! _CMN_? Are we actually standing before a _CMN_ piece?!"

"What's _CMN_?" Abigail questioned in confusion.

"Not what, who! _CMN_ is only one of the sickest low-profile graffiti artists in Seattle! No one knows who he is, and all his works are only up temporarily. I guess he puts them up and once the message has been received, he drains the wires back up." Without missing a beat, Delsin had his phone out ready to snap an image.

"Well, it seems like our artist is also quite the sadist on the side," Fetch stated as the victim sat upright on another wall. The three decided they would keep a close eye on the victim until he was able to talk again, in case he knew some valuable information.

"Hold up, Smokes, we can't just leave him here!" Fetch shouted as Delsin went to leave, "He'll die!"

Throwing his arms up, Delsin's excitement left as quickly as it came, "Oh, and _where_, exactly, shall we put him? In a hospital? Dump him in the bay? Hand him over to the D.U.P.'s?"

"We can take him to mine," Eugene walked forward, taking one of the victim's arm and pulling it over his shoulder. He motioned for Delsin to help, "The Lantern District's next, so we might find something else while we're there."

* * *

><p>Say hello to Chapter 2! As you can see, regular chapters are now going to be much larger in size. It's nice to see the Wire conduit in this much more, but still not much is revealed about them... yet! Stay tuned to find out more about them and see what happens next. Until next time!<p> 


	3. Catch Me Now

Carrying a full grown man's dead weight was not an easy task, even for the conduits. The bridge that once connected Pioneer Square and The Lantern District had now been destroyed. With Fetch carrying his feet and Eugene and Delsin holding an arm each, the trio managed to jump across sections to the other side.

"Hold up the hatch," instructed Delsin, letting the victim fall in. He hit the concrete with a loud thud.

"Delsin! What the hell?!" Fetch slapped his arm, "We're trying to keep him alive, dude."

Delsin responded with a snicker, jumping into Eugene's makeshift hideout after him. Looking around, he noticed an abundance of cables and electronics all over the place.

"Ahh, a delicious meal prepared for the guest of honour," joked Delsin, shifting the cables with his feet, "He'd be like a kid in a candy store."

Eugene hoisted the victim's body onto a computer chair and wheeled it towards a wall, out of direct sight if anyone were to come in, "It'd be easier… If he came in here."

"You gotta point there, we'd be able to get him much easier," Fetch perked up, taking a chair for herself and riding it effortlessly over to Delsin, "But until then we should keep checkin' out the area. Who knows, our boy may be more willing to meet us now."

Delsin snorted, resting a leg on the arm of the chair, "Oh, no way. _CMN_ is notorious for basically becoming invisible if you look for him. But I was fishing through the interwebs before catching him at Pioneer Square and came across this beauty," he declared, taking out his phone and holding it out in front of him. Abigial and Eugene positioned themselves so they had a better view of the screen.

After a few clicks, an image of someone with a black hooded sweater on appeared before them.

"Um… what is this?" asked Fetch, clearly unimpressed with the evidence.

Delsin's arms fell to his thighs in defeat, "You just cannot be pleased," he remarked, nipping the tip of Fetch's nose with his thumb and forefinger. She jerked back in shock, sighing through her nose and standing on her feet.

"It is just one of the _only_ photographs every captured of _CMN_ with people knowing it's him. Or at least we think it's him. But it's the best we've got," Delsin explained, following after her. "Look, you can see his hair. It's chin-length and messy and bleached stark white."

"Poor thing, that must be pricey," Abigail retorted. She headed for the door, "Look, D, it's some pretty good information. I mean, that hair ain't hard to pick out. But the hour's almost up, meaning he'll be outta here if he ain't already."

Still following her, Delsin peered over his shoulder to make sure Eugene was also coming along. He scratched the back of his neck as he jumped through the door frame and outside. There was so much anticipation surging through his body just from the thought of meet one of his greatest idols. _'He'd probably be really cool,'_ Delsin thought to himself, shading the sun with his hands as his eyes adjusted, _'and drink thirty coffee's a day.'_

"Yo, Smokes," Fetch gave Delsin a little pinch on his upper arm, "We're splittin' up again, yeah?" Delsin responded in a nod and wide smile, before dashing towards a nearby air vent.

There was something oddly comforting about becoming smoke. It felt warm and homely, and was the closest thing to comfort he felt since this had all begun. Becoming smoke meant being weightless and free, something he had tried to be for so many years. And even while having so much on his shoulders, for once in his life Delsin felt like he could achieve anything.

The Lantern District was set out rather well for what they had to do. Some districts were packed with buildings, which just meant more alleyways, and more chances of missing _CMN_. The number of places for anything to pop up here was significantly less though.

Delsin's phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out, reading a text message from Reggie explaining the location of where someone reported weird graffiti. 'I'm on it, thanks.' Delsin texted back, before forwarding the text to Fetch and Eugene. Only a few seconds went by and he could see Neon and Video trails hovering over buildings a few blocks away. Delsin wasn't expecting anything more than what was found yesterday, but he was definitely hopeful. He waited a moment or two, before moving to the buildings on foot. He was still unsure of what the conduit could track - whether it was movement or his conduit gene, similarly to how tracker drones could find him - and so figured this would be the best option.

Clinging to the gutter on the roof, Delsin peered over into another alleyway intersection. In the middle, he found another cage. This time the cage was cube-shaped. He pushed himself off the wall and landed next to the cage, inspecting the intricate structure. Inside lay another victim on their backs. They had deep scratches over their face and arms, clothing tattered and stained with blood.

Just as before, Fetch raised her hand in front of her and the wires dispelled into the drains. She checked on the victim and deemed her unconscious. Delsin walked further into the alleyway, looking for a new piece.

"_A BOY BY ANY OTHER NAME IS JUST AS SWEET_" was scrawled in sixties-style cursive writing. Delsin brought out his phone and took a photo of the new piece.

"That's cute," Fetch laughed, checking out the writing, "He's a fan of the classics."

"Well, I appreciate what he's saying; about how even though he called me a boy in the last piece, that I shouldn't be too upset over it because it's just a name, it doesn't mean anything," Delsin explained, looking for the same signature in wire.

"Do you think he heard us? Earlier, I mean," Eugene started, lifting the fresh victim over his shoulder, "He obviously knew that calling you a boy had upset you."

Delsin moved over to help Eugene, "Hey, that's true! That could mean…" Delsin was gushing with excitement, almost dropping the victim, "What if he's here _right now_?!"

Fetch immediately sprung at Delsin, grabbing his face to try hold his mouth shut, "Pffsshhhhh!" she breathed, spitting all over him in the process. The initial shock from being jumped at and then sprayed with spit had Delsin grabbing at Fetch's wrists and pushing her away from him.

"Gross, what the hell, Fetch?!" he cried, flicking his fingers dramatically. She flung out her arms and pretended to jump at him in a move of intimidation, to which he cocked a brow at.

"Let's get her somewhere safe," Eugene spoke, distracting them. Delsin stuck out his tongue at her, moving to pick up the victim again, "We'll talk about it later."

The walk back to Eugene's was no where near as challenging this time around, with the victim found only a few blocks away. Keeping to tradition, Delsin dropped the victim into the hatch again. Fetch rolled her eyes, pushing him in forcefully.

"Hey, hey, Laser Show, don't be so upset," Delsin put on a baby voice, pretending to wipe away tears.

Fetch ignored him completely, walking straight passed him and wheeling the newest victim near the first. She checked up on the other victim, who was sleeping heavily. She placed a bottle of water on the ground before moving back to the other. "Okay, we got a bit to work out."

"Not here," Eugene said, pointing towards the electronic equipment that covered the ground.

Delsin and Fetch nodded in agreement, as the three headed back outside.

"When should we be heading over to Rainier?" asked Delsin, scaling a nearby building.

Once they had all reached the top, Fetch rolled back her jacket sleeve to check her watch, "It's 2:57 PM right now, so we should get goin'."

"Wait, Fetch," Eugene reached to grab her shoulder before she left, "We can't just keep looking for clues. We need to find the actual conduit, not just chase him around Seattle all day."

"Eugene's right," said Delsin, pacing on the roof. "You know, he probably knows where we are right now. He knows you guys. And he's always everywhere. He's in the drains. But I don't think he's hiding anymore."

Fetch took a seat on the side of an air vent, "So we don't really need to sneak up anymore, we just gotta keep our eyes open for him."

The three sat in silence, thinking about tactics and strategies that could help them out. They knew the conduit was playing around with them, but they were in too deep to even consider backing out now. And they didn't know what the conduit's motives were. They had no idea why he was hurting people, as they were always unable to communicate in some way. Who knew if he was stopping criminals like Fetch used to or if he was just doing it for fun.

"Maybe it's social commentary," Delsin joked, looking at Eugene and Fetch's face for any signs of approval. To his dismay, they showed none.

"D," Fetch started, stretching her legs in front of her, "People don't just _hurt_ people for no reason, not how he does. And if it turns out that there ain't a reason behind it, then he need'sta be stopped anyway. We can't have him runnin' around soilin' this image of conduits we've been spending so long trying to create."

Fetch's ability to make good points really pissed Delsin off sometimes. He had no idea how she did it, but everything she said just made so much sense, while also making him look like a complete tool. Still, she was a great member of the team because of this, and she was strong.

Delsin hopped up to a television aerial, spinning around it by one hand, "So how about, we check out Rainier for clues. If we come back with nothing," he breathed in, taking a step and landing back onto the roof, "then we ambush. We go through the drains and destroy all the wires in there. If we can't find him, then we'll force him out."

"Like a pimple." Fetch laughed at her comparison, moving towards the edge of the rooftop facing Rainier. "3:03. Time to move out."

Rainier was one of the easiest districts to check out. The buildings were sparse and spread out, with no more than three buildings on each block. Delsin was more confident searching in this district than some of the previous ones. There was far more opportunity to find the conduit, _CMN_. Wherever they were, Deslin hoped they could find him.

Approaching Rainier, they noticed a large group of people facing one of the main buildings in the district. The three conduits moved towards the building on foot now. They were trying to draw the least amount of attention to themselves as possible; having people so focused on a something meant people would be talking about it, and distracting them would limit the amount of information they could gather.

"Look at it, it's huge!"

"What does it even mean?"

"It was some sort of Wire Bio-terrorist, I'm _sure_ of it!"

"Don't take a photo of it, you could get a virus on your phone!"

"N-No, I don't think that's how it works."

These were some of the comments the conduits heard when they arrived to the edge of the building. Looking up, they noticed another message. This time, the message was barely legible, most likely where the conduit rushed to put up the message while having the least amount of people seeing him. Written in bold, and much larger than the previous ones had been, the message read "_CATCH ME NOW_". _'Catch me now?'_ Delsin thought to himself, rubbing his eyes. _'CMN. It's his initials! Clever boy...'_ he laughed to himself.

Delsin turned to his right, finding Fetch and Eugene in the crowd a few feet away from him. He moved a few steps forward, trying to attract their attention. Once they had, he mouthed the words _'Victims?'_, then shrugged his shoulders to imply that what he was saying was a question. They looked around but were unable to see anything obvious.

Delsin lifted his phone to take a photo of the piece. Someone leaned over his shoulder, "Hey, is that a…?" they started, pointing to a shadow positioned over the word ME. It was a person's silhouette, no doubt about that. Slowly, Delsin peaked over his shoulder towards the top of a building over the road. Standing there was in fact a person, hardly visible from the sun behind them. Delsin motioned to Eugene and Fetch to head left, crossing the road and climbing the building.

From the roof, it was much easier to see the person. Delsin could feel his heart beat in his ears, his palms were beginning to sweat, "Guys, it's…" his voice was cut short, his mouth twisting into a weird smile-scream hybrid. Breath loud and shallow, he flicked his chin in the direction of the building, Fetch and Eugene's eyes following.

"It's him."

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><p>Woooh, chapter 3 is ready and out, how exciting! Thanks to everyone following, favouriting and reviewing this story! It's been heaps of fun to write for you all, and I appreciate everything! Any comments you want to make, corrections on spelling or grammar, just ANYTHING, it's all welcome! Please don't be afraid to tell me anything, I'll only love you for it!<p>

I love that there is finally some more information coming out on this _CMN_ kid, so look out for the next chapter to find out who they are. Until next time!


	4. Smoke Signals

"Get _down_!"

Delsin felt hands grab him by the shoulders and force him against the ground. His breath was caught in his throat, holding air in anticipation. Falling quickly made the blood rush, his vision fogged temporarily. Overhead, he saw black dashes soaring overhead. They were being attacked.

From all around, hundreds of black wires appeared, running up the walls and on to the roof rapidly. The three conduits were surrounded, now pulling themselves back up off the ground. Delsin felt someone grab his collar, pulling him in to one side of the roof. They were heading straight for the wires.

"Fuckin', _JUMP_!" Fetch screamed, hurling herself up and over the wires. Delsin and Eugene followed suit. The black dashes kept being fired at them, hitting the conduits in the back as they leaped into the air. The wires were moving inward too quickly to stand upright in time. Delsin's hands flew before him, hitting the building and scratching for anything to grab. His body smashed into bricks, a window sill hitting him at the waist causing him to wince. Fear was creating sweat in the palms of his hands. The dashes were hitting the top of the building, slowly making their way down the wall. A few dashes rebounded into Delsin's face, hitting him lightly. He noticed that the dashes were also wire. Adrenaline pumped through his body as his fingers slid off the windowsill, his head rolling back as he fell to the ground.

Fetch made a quick dash in the air, landing on the top of the building. She rolled over her shoulder, using inertia to throw herself off the other side of the roof. She could hear the wire bullets on the other side of the building. A strong breeze hit her body that caused her shoulders to lock up in freight. She looked up to see Eugene landing at her fingertips. He reached out a hand, body trembling as the wire bullets hit him from behind. Fetch as hesitant to let go, but did quickly, grabbing Eugene at the wrist. As soon as he felt her hand he threw himself off the roof and to the ground in the alleyway.

Delsin, with nothing in reach around him, materialised into smoke to protect himself from the fall. He moved quickly around the corner of the alley. Transitioning back into his physical form, he tackled Eugene and Fetch to the ground. Delsin had packed a strong blow to Fetch and Eugene's chests, winding them momentarily. Strange brushing sounds filled their ears as they were encircled by the wires pumping the white orbs. They reached up diagonally, creating a strong cylindrical wall around them. The wires spiralled upwards to the peak where they kept revolving around, tying off their only way out.

As each conduit moved to try and attack the wall, wires reached up to their hands and twisted around their ankles. Horror filled the minds of Fetch and Eugene. They looked at each other, the feeling of the wires holding their hands still much too fresh and familiar.

"Eugene, it's just like Cur…" Fetch began, before the peak opened up to reveal a body move inside. The light was limited and made it hard to see.

The person was suspended using the wires like a curtain dancer, the wires moving like a pulley to lower them. The peak then closed, leaving the four in almost pitch darkness. Wires covered the three conduits' feet like the bottom of a snake pit, slithering in all directions. Some made their way up their legs, others flung themselves around wildly.

"So," they began. The three conduits looked up to see the person staring down at them. Their face was not visible in the dim lighting, but their voice was badly muffled, "You've noticed the similarities of these shackles to the ones from Curdun Cay."

The minute Curdun Cay was mentioned, Fetch began throwing herself around trying to break free. She tried to stamp, and tried to destroy the shackles on the ground, but it was no use. Any breakages in the wires were immediately repaired.

"Are you _CMN_?" Eugene begun, keeping his eyes low. The person's breath was loud through whatever was muffling it. The rhythm sped up so that a quiet laugh was audible. They did not receive an answer.

Delsin took another look, squinting his eyes to try and focus on who the person was. They allowed themselves to be lowered further until they were only a few feet above the conduits' heads. There, they created a trail of wires around them. The wires moved quickly, carrying many white orbs that created somewhat better lighting in the wire casing. Delsin could see that the person's hood was tight around their face.

The person leaned down towards Delsin, head turning so they were looking straight on. Delsin could see that the person's face was covered in some sort of mask, which explained why he had a muffled voice. Then, as if a prayer had been answered, a clump of hair fell out from underneath the hood. The hair was so light, reflecting the same colours as the orbs that surrounded them. Realisation hit Delsin like a bullet train. Knees beginning to give, Delsin's head became hazy. The wires coiled around his frame, solid and strong enough to keep him upright. Other wires tangled around Eugene and Fetch, keeping them still.

As _CMN_ let themselves drop to the ground, the wire cage around them began to dissolve. The wires around the conduits' feet lifted them up off the ground, turning them inwards. Sunlight caused the conduit's to squint, trying to avoid it until their eyes adjusted. Once they were alright, they lifted their heads again. Before them stood a tall, lean person donning the familiar sweater from the photograph they had viewed earlier, as well as a full-face gas mask. _CMN_ pulled off their hood, revealing a tangle of wavy white hair.

"Yeah," he started, taking the mask by the straps and pulling it over his head, "I'm _CMN_."

It was a strange feeling, seeing someone you had known about for months for the first time. Everything felt so raw and so wrong; like discovering a new species of animal. You don't know what to expect, how to feel, what to say. You've stayed up thinking about this moment, and here you are. And you have nothing. No words. No thoughts. No sounds, no movement. You feel disgusted, vulnerable, betrayed. You feel relieved, thankful, welcomed. Nothing can be done to give justice to what this means to you, so you just stare on.

"You're a _girl_," Fetch commented, her lips pulling back to show her teeth.

_CMN_ stood there, looking more confused than they were, "Um… s-sorry?"

"We thought you were a boy," explained Eugene. Slight wrinkles were developing on his forehead and he tried to understand the situation.

At this, squatted down, "Golly, that's one way to meet someone."

"We're not trying to be rude," Eugene continued, not allowing the others to speak in case they said something stupid or sarcastic, "It's just… we were caught off guard."

"My gender caught you off guard, did it?" _CMN_ laughed, "Not the artwork, not the hourly rotations, not the fact that I _heard you the entire time_, but my _gender_?! Oh, wow, this is incredible."

"You heard us?" asked Fetch.

"Well, I'm no mind reader. How else do you think I knew what to write? It wasn't an accident. I knew that the title _Banner Man_ annoyed Delsin," she lifted a finger towards him, "So I knew it would be a great way to get his attention."

The three conduits understood, as _CMN_ stood up. She created a wire staircase leading to Eugene, walking up it to face him.

"And you are?" she asked bluntly, hands on her waist with her hip out to one side.

Eugene had to lift his head up, as she was much taller than he thought, "I'm… Eugene?" The end of his name raised in pitch, his voice trembling.

"Are you asking me or something?" _CMN_ retorted, the staircase moving on to Fetch.

"Ahh, Fetch. I _loved_ your work on the news the other day! That was really something," said _CMN_, hopping on to the edge of the wires wrapped Fetch's ankles, "That was pretty cool, blasting that hole through the guy."

"Thanks, glad you saw it," Fetch smirked.

_CMN_ slung an arm over Fetch's shoulders, "Such pretty hair, must be hard to maintain but you seem to be doing a wonderful job. Also, I'm an Aries. Seems like we're the Alpha and the Omega. Beginning and the End. First and Last," she enthused, moving back to the staircase as it turned to Delsin.

"And last, but definitely not least, the _Banner Boy_," _CMN_ gave a bow to Delsin, "You sure have helped our kind. I mean, look at this place," she spun around, arms outstretched, "I can't see a D.U.P. for miles! And that's all thanks to you!"

Delsin shrugged his shoulders confidently, "Well, I mean, I do what I can," he gave a crooked smile, to which _CMN_ did the same.

Before anyone could say any more, Delsin's phone started ringing. He looked around, trying to work out how to reach it but was unable to with the shackles still around his wrists. "I've got it," smiled _CMN_, moving on to the wires around Delsin's feet. She reached out a palm and started feeling around for a pocket.

Not a moment passed before her hands were over his crotch, "Wow, do you have one of those massive smartphones or are you just happy to see me?" Fetch gasped, attempting to attack her, while Delsin didn't react. _CMN_ moved her hand to the correct pocket and pulled out Delsin's phone. "Reggie Rowe," she read, moving to the staircase and climbing down.

"No, no, don't answer that!" Delsin shouted, trying to reach her with the shackles. While Delsin was a fan of _CMN_, he didn't know her or trust her at all.

_CMN_ turned to face him, a serious look on her face. She extended her free hand and faced her palm to Delsin's chest, storing energy in her arm, "Say what I tell you to say or I'll kill you all," she demanded, answering the phone and putting it on loud speaker.

"Hey, Delsin? You there?" Reggie asked, his voice sounding proud.

_CMN_ jerked her head forward, trying to get Delsin to hurry up and answer, "Y-Yeah, I'm here, dude! What's up?" Delsin asked, eyeing _CMN_ with a look of hostility the whole time.

"Great! Well, I think I have a little more info on _CMN_," Reggie continued. _CMN_'s face lit up, her mouth opening to reveal a smile, "I have almost everything here! Birth certificates, medical reports, tax invoices, everything from the day she was born until about a year ago…"

_CMN_'s face dropped. She moved further away from Delsin, her hand beginning to shake.

"Del? What is that? Are you running around at the moment?" Reggie called through the phone.

Delsin leaned forward, trying to speak loudly without making Reggie suspicious, "N-No, nah, no, that's just… just some breeze is all. Thanks for the info, I'll call you later."

"Wait up, Delsin. I found something else out," Reggie's voice was like glass shards in _CMN_'s chest. Everything he said broke down another wall she had spent so long trying to build up, "_Her_, yes, it's a girl! Surprised me too… Her name is _Cater Maye Nelly_-"

Carter hung up the phone, throwing it at Delsin who barely managed to catch it inside his elbow. The three conduits stared at Carter, feeling mixtures of shock, confusion and anger. She looked back at them each, eyes wild and angry, darting around at each of them and to the alleyways around them. How long had she been here, keeping them still? Had anyone seen them? Could anyone have heard the phone call? She was not worried about any D.U.P.'s, but having people know her name and that she was also a conduit was a dangerous situation to be in.

"Follow me," she ordered, lowering them to the ground and pulling the wires back off them. She headed north towards Waterfront, "What I said before still applies; try anything and I'll kill you."

Carter pushed the three conduits to all walk in front of her, instructing them to look calm and where to go. Once they reached Waterfont, she explained that she had an apartment in the center of the district. Once they reached the correct building, she used her wires to hoist the three up and only the balcony. She didn't want any of them powering up or being in a position where they could run off.

Climbing up the wall, she pulled herself over the railing and opened the door to her apartment, telling them that they had to wait for a bit to allow for her to explain herself to them. The apartment was quite spacious, holding two bedrooms, even though it was just for herself. She sat them down on the couches that filled the lounge room.

"I wish I could offer you guys something to drink, but I don't get water in here," she confessed, moving to the kitchen and turning the tap to prove that nothing came out. She walked back to the lounge room and took a seat on the coffee table, facing them all. From there, she began explaining her story.

"Basically," Carter began, bringing her knees to her chest, "I ran away when I discovered my powers. To Seattle. Right here. But once other residents started putting in accusations, I guessed it was time for me to leave or I would be taken away by the government. That's what people said," she explained, "So one night, I faked a suicide in here. I had heard that this apartment complex doesn't allow people to live in rooms that people have died in, and so doing that meant the room would be boarded up. Once the hype had died down, I came in through the window to find all my stuff exactly where I had left it, like some weird memorial for my spirit to stay in or something. I dunno, the lady that owns the place is whack. But yeah, I messed with the cables and got myself electricity, but no water yet. It's a pain, but I survive."

The three conduits sat in silence for a few minutes. Carter hadn't told them much so they were unsure of whether she would continue, but once she began looking around they thought she was done. "So, uhh…" Delsin cleared his throat, "Why did you get so worked up earlier about people knowing your name? Like, it's fine to be cautious, but you seemed terrified."

Carter looked at the ground for a bit before speaking, "I have a pretty extreme case of paranoia. I always feel like I'm being followed. Waterfront is the only district I don't mess with, because I'm scared people will find me here if they know there's a conduit here. And if people knew my name, knew that I was still alive, they might research me. They'd see everything, about me being 'dead' and stuff. They'd report me and I'd be locked away for sure."

Nodding, the three understood the situation she was in. Fetch considered asking about how she had discovered her powers but thought it best she leave it at that. Delsin looked around, looked for anything he could possibly to that would make her need to hold his hand. He needed the Wire manipulation. It was so intricate and technical, nothing like the abilities he had at the moment. He would be at such an advantage to Augustine with those powers.

Delsin looked over to Fetch for some suggestions, holding his own hands to tell her what he needed to do. She nodded lightly, "Hey, Carter, you wouldn't happen to have any food lying around, would you?" Fetch asked sincerely. Carter's eyes lit up at the question as she stood up to leave, just as Fetch stretched out a foot. Her shoe hit Carter's shin, toppling her over and sending her straight to the floor.

"Oh, no!" Delsin called half-heartedly, standing up. He leant down to her and stuck out his hand, "Let me help you up, just grab my hand." Carter reached out to him. The moment their hands made contact, Delsin felt the familiar sensation of fingers scratching at his skull.

Before him flashed images of Carter, running alone on the street. They flashed to her getting pulled down by someone, an old man, and then her releasing her powers on him. Another image flashed, which showed her living in her apartment, before the memory of her fake suicide was displayed.

When Delsin and Carter came to, Carter quickly crawled away and to the window, "What the _fuck_ was _that_?!" she screamed, trying to undo the hatch. Eugene walked towards her to help her up but she wouldn't let him near.

"I know, I'm sorry," apologised Delsin, trying to convince her that there was nothing wrong.

Carter was starting to hyperventilate, holding her hands to her chest, "You… You were in my head! How did you do that? W-Why did you do that?!" she screamed at him.

"I had to," Delsin admitted, "I'm able to absorb people's powers, and, well, I had to get Wire."

"And you couldn't have asked?" Carter was not calming down, trying to get to her feet. She went to run at Delsin, just as he did too. The two collided in the middle of the room, Delsin gripping onto her forearms in his hands. He felt himself travelling into the depths of his mind, recovering memories she'd rather not know.

_'It first happened about a year ago. I was walking home from work, at about 11 PM, when I swore someone was following me. I didn't want to make any assumptions or look scared, because that would be rude. I thought worrying was the wrong thing to do, but God was I wrong. When the man grabbed me from behind, all this fear I had suppressed from walking at night just burst in a chaotic destruction of wire from my own fingers. I didn't understand what had happened to me, how could I be one of _them_? At first I blamed myself. I told myself about how I shouldn't have walked home that night, and instead caught a cab or ask a friend to give me a lift. I drowned myself in blame and hatred, developed severe Paranoia, as well as experiencing episodes of depression and anxiety, until I realised that I was not the one at fault. No one with the conduit gene is at fault for having their powers._

_The next day, I told my parents I had planned a spontaneous holiday with a friend. I used all of the money I saved over the years, packed my stuff and left. I didn't worry about much, I figured I would constantly be on the run from the government now. I had heard a lot about a place called Curdun Cay; about how horrible it was, a prison for born-criminals. It was my mission to stay out of there for as long as possible, while also trying my best to eliminate the dangerous people on the streets who could hurt others just like me. I swore to myself that I would never let anyone go through what I had to. I wouldn't let anyone else suffer.'_

As Carter and Delsin came to, Fetch and Eugene grabbed a hold of Carter with their hands. The minute she was back she began thrashing her legs everywhere, "You know too much! This isn't fair, this isn't _right_!" she screamed at him.

"Definitely an Aries," Fetch confirmed, restraining her as much as she could. For someone her size, she was strong, even with Carter's height advantage.

Delsin sat up slowly, moving over towards her. "Look, Carter, I-" she spat at him, trying to kick him with her black combat boots. "Carter, listen to me. You shared something massive in your life, now let me do the same," he said, trying to compromise with her. She began to relax, putting her legs on the carpet. She glared at him, not saying a word. "Thank you."

Delsin walked over to the coffee table, sitting on the edge of it, "Okay, so the reason for… all that was, I need your powers. The government, who you think will take you if they find you, has done a very big no-no to me, and I need to make it right. You see, this bitch named Augustine disabled my entire tribe. They're slowly _dying_, because of her. I promised I would fix them, but the only way I can do that is by getting some of Augustine's concrete power, and in order to do that I have to be strong enough to defeat her."

Carter was unmoving, breathing heavily through her nose. "Having this Wire power brings me so much closer to saving my friends, my family. I'm sorry for not asking, but I didn't know how you would react. It was too big a risk."

Her face softening, Carter explained that all she wanted was an explanation and an apology, "Wire starts out pretty weak though. You're gonna' need some stuff to power you up."

"Like, maybe… I don't know… some Core Relays?" replied Delsin. A grin stretched across Carter's face.

Eugene moved in, "I'll try find some tomorrow, we can go in the morning."

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><p>Chapter four is complete! We finally have an identity for <em>CMN<em>, how sweet is that?! Hahah, thanks to everyone who has been Following, Favouriting and Reviewing, you guys have made this so worth while and are the reason I've been trying to pump these out so quickly. Next chapter will have a little more action in it, so stay tuned for that. Until next time!


	5. Evicted

**WARNING: THIS CHAPTER BEGINS WITH A DESCRIPTION OF THE ATTACK A CHARACTER OF THE STORY ENDURED. THE DESCRIPTION IS NOT INCREDIBLY GRAPHIC, HOWEVER IT IS ADVISED THAT IF YOU EXPERIENCE ANXIETY, FEAR OR STRESS WHEN READING ABOUT DANGEROUS SITUATIONS, THAT YOU SKIP THE STORY THAT IS IN _ITALICS_. WHAT THAT PARAGRAPH IS ABOUT IS MENTIONED LATER ON IN THE CHAPTER, SO READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION**

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><p><em>"Hold still, bitch. You don't want me to hurt you." His hands were on my throat, finger nails piercing through my skin. The sharp pains sent shivers through my body. The wind whistled around us through the alleyway, the updraft caused my skirt to swish lightly. Fear held me captive a lot more than he did. Who was he? What did he want from me? What could he do? How strong was he? I tried to think but my mind screamed. The ringing in my ears was sickening. He was dragging me now, my legs had no strength to stand me up. He kept muttering curses and threats, telling me in detail what he would do to me but I could not process anything. All I knew was that I had to get out of here before I was killed.<em>

_My body was thrown against the brick wall, grazing my right cheek and making me dizzy. He had one hand on my back and the other was searching around in his pocket for something. The dim streetlight reflected off the metal he brought out. My stomach dropped. I could taste vomit in my mouth. He took the object and pulled them from the waist of my skirt. The air tickled further up my leg as material fell on my feet. He dropped the object on the ground. It rattled and clanged with the concrete until it became still. I could feel my heartbeat in the tips of my fingers. The amount of pressure he was applying onto the back of my chest was making me dizzy now._

_I could feel two fingers slip into my underwear and pull down. The movement caused me to lose my balance as he released me slightly. I fell to the ground, turning myself around to face him. All I could see was his black silhouette, the edges of him glowing from the light behind. I could not make out any specific features other than that he had a large physique, not fit but stocky. He had short hair and a large head. He bent slightly, grabbing my ankles and pulling them outwards, tearing my underwear off my knees._

_"N-No no! Please stop!" I exclaimed, bringing my hands forward to push his face away, but he grabbed my wrists and shoved them above my head. I shrieked in pain as he used his knees to keep my thighs apart. His left hand was free, free to do what he pleased. He started at my face, holding my jaw and throwing it around at will, taking in my features. I could feel his breath from his nose run down my neck. Another shiver surged through me. He laughed, bringing out his hand and swinging it against my cheek. The pain stung against the graze from the brick wall, warm blood welling on the surface of my skin. Dirt, sweat and hair swam in the red mess._

_He moved his hand further down, brushing my chest lightly with his fingertips. He kept moving, his palm against my lower abdomen. My body started trembling again, tears welling in my eyes. Each inch he moved further down, a furious rage boiled inside of me. My blood pumped around my body so fast it hurt my veins, and I started going dizzy again. I could see his eyes glimmer in the night, a smirk making its way across his wrinkly face. His focus was slowly shifting to my body, and I could feel his right hand weakening on my wrists._

_The next few seconds went so quickly. Weakened grip. Pull hands down. Black light, blue light, white light, running around my arms. Thin line, from my palm. Hits him in the chest. He falls. Blood pooling. Run. Run. RUN. Don't stop._

Eugene woke to the scent of something burning, rubbing his eyes as he sat up from the couch. He looked around as his eyes adjusted, taking in his surroundings. Memories of yesterday flooded his mind as he stood up. He walked into the kitchen quietly, seeing Carter staring ahead. Two pieces of black sat in the toaster.

"Hey, Carter, are you oka-" The smoke alarm started ringing, making Carter and Eugene jump. Fetch and Delsin ran out from the lounge room, holding their hands against the sides of their heads.

"_WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!"_ Fetch screamed over the alarm. Carter's eyes widened as she ran for the tea towel on the sink, throwing it around hysterically in an attempt to turn it off.

As the sound died down, Carter grabbed a chair and shoved it under the alarm. She jumped on it and ripped the smoke alarm from the ceiling, sprinting to the window. She fiddled with the latch for a moment before the windows were thrown open. Her arm swung back, catapulting the alarm over rooftops. She spun on her heels and headed for her bedroom, grabbing some suitcases and putting them by the window.

Wires erected from her back, splitting in to four arm-like sections. They moved around the room, folding blankets and cleaning the little mess she had allowed. The arms twisted back around, collecting the three conduits and the suitcases. Carter ran for the window and jumped. She pushed her hand forward and aimed for a manhole on the ground, wires firing from her palms. They slung her to the ground, lifting the manhole and pulling her through.

Once inside, Carter dematerialised back into wires, still holding the three conduits. She held their hands closed, not giving them an opportunity to use their powers. Inside, she traveled along the wires almost faster than sound, creating a wind tunnel that propelled her even faster. A loud boom echoed through the drains. As soon as the sound rang, Carter forced open another manhole. They were in Rainier now, flying into the air as Carter materialised back into her physical form.

"We can't run on the roofs, we gotta go!" she ordered, taking the suitcases in her hands.

Fetch landed on a balcony nearby, "Whaddaya' mean we can't run on the roofs?!" she called, cupping her hands around her mouth.

Carter turned back to Fetch, eyes burning with anger and fear, "Because they'll _see us_. We have a blue lightbulb, a bonfire and Las Vegas. It'll be so obvious where we are." Carter's voice trembled, her fear was enough to convince Fetch that she knew what they were doing.

"We can hide at mine," Eugene suggested, taking the lead. The four sprinted as fast as they could without using their powers, helicopters soaring overhead and D.U.P. soldiers running on foot. They had to be careful with where they ran as to not be caught, while getting there as quickly as possible.

Eugene took them around the back of his lair, to a large concrete door that scraped the ground as it opened. It took a few moments before their eyes adjusted to the darkness, squinting and trying not to bump into anything.

They moved to the middle of the place, sitting on the ground in a circle. Fetch massaged her temples, "Alright, why the _hell_ did we have to bolt back there?"

"Because," Carter began, taking in her surroundings, "I didn't put that smoke alarm there. It never used to be there. That's why the DUP's came so quickly. They knew," she explained, untying and retying her shoelaces quickly.

"Are you sure everything was where it had been?" Delsin asked, resting his elbows on his knees.

Carter's eyes flicked over to him, eyebrows furrowing, "Yes. I try to keep everything exactly where it had been left so I can bolt if I have to. Everything was how it had been-"

"Toast," Eugene interrupted, pulling his hood off his head. This was one of the first times the three had ever seen him without his hood on, "you were making toast. And it got burnt. And… it was taken out."

A wave of anxiety gushed through Carter's system, goosebumps rising on her arms. She scrambled for an empty trash can, her knees wobbly, and threw up into it. She began crying instantly, all of her worries releasing at once.

The three conduits were taken aback, not completely sure on how to act. They still hardly knew Carter, but they had already experienced her snappy nature to realise that they had to be careful around her. She was startled easily, like a mouse, and could probably have a heart attack from something small too.

"I'm sure everything will be okay," Delsin reassured her, walking to where she was crouched over the plastic. He lifted the hoodie over her head, careful not to dirty it, and pulled her hair back.

Fetch stood up also, kneeling near her and rubbing her back, "It's okay, C. We just gotta wait until the DUP's get out of there and you can go back," she suggested.

Carter shook her head slowly, "No. They know someone was there. Security's going to go up in Waterfront and I've lost my apartment. They'll have a constant watch in case I try to go back."

Delsin and Fetch exchanged a worried glance, before the sound of a metal pole hitting the concrete distracted them all. Eugene was over the other side of the room, pulling apart an empty shelving unit by the wall.

"What the hell..?" Fetch murmured, as they watched the gamer running around grabbing blankets and pillows. He was setting up a bed.

"You can stay here for a while…" Eugene explained, walking towards them, "if you want?"

A smile crept across Carter's face, her shoulders rolling back, "That would be really nice. Thank you." Eugene smiled back.

"Uurrgghhhhh." A loud grunting sound came from another section of the domain, Delsin and Fetch jumping up to grab the hostages they had forgotten about. Eugene moved towards Carter to help her stand, pausing slightly as she held his elbows to keep herself balanced.

Fetch and Delsin threw the victims over their shoulders and ran to the back door, trying not to let Carter see them in case she got mad. They left them down an alleyway not too far from the domain, but far enough that they could not find their way back.

"Yo, Carter, it looks like everything's cleared out now," said Delsin as he walked back inside, pulling his beanie down.

"And it looks like they've set up some more Core Relay's in Waterfront." Clicking away on his laptop, Eugene pulled up a map of the city, showing several blue bulbs around the area that gave off waves of light. Delsin and Fetch moved closer to take a look, as Carter opened her suitcase to change into different clothing.

After a few moments of the three conduits messing around on the laptops, pulling up security cameras and trying to interfere with the radios, Carter emerged from the other room sporting some red three-quarter sweatpants, a black singlet and a denim jacket. She had the same scuffed combat boots as before.

"They're still there, you know," said Carter, brushing her hair with her fingers, "they're checking out the apartment, probably. Just because there aren't people in the sky doesn't mean there aren't people."

Delsin smirked, looking over to Fetch, "We could ambush them?" Fetch's eyes gleamed in the dim light shining out of the monitors that lined the walls nearby.

"Nuh uh," Carter grunted, pulling her hair off her face, "I'm not going back there yet."

"There's no point in me getting any Core Relay's without you. I don't know what I can do when I get them, I need you to be there to help me," pleaded Delsin as he grabbed a nearby computer chair and sat down.

Carter moved back, waving a hand in the air, "There's no way we can go there right now. There will be hundreds of soldiers. They're going crazy, trying to get all of the conduits. Right now, this is the biggest clue they have, and they're pouncing on it," she explained, pointing to a computer screen. The news was on, reporting the possibility of a conduit living in an abandoned apartment. Throwing her hands in the air, Carter stormed out of the room, "I'm just never going to get a break."

"Look, Carter, the Core Relay's aren't going to be there forever," Delsin followed her, leaning on the doorframe to the next room, "so now's our best chance."

"How about this." Fetch perked up, walking into the room, "D and I scope out the area, try and work out how many there are of them, see where they're hidin' and stuff. If it's safe then you and Teen Angel can come help us out."

"You want me to wait?" Eugene asked, pulling his hood back up.

Delsin nodded toward him in response, punching his shoulder lightly as he walked by, "We won't be long. Just… talk. Get to know each other, I don't know. Whatever." With that, the concrete door slammed shut and the two were left in silence.

Carter swung her body around, bringing up her arm and slamming a fist on the desk in front of her. Eugene flinched, tugging on the ends of his sleeves. He was looking around, searching the room for anything to do, to say, just to break this silence.

"You know," Carter began, pulling herself upright and facing Eugene, "my life was great yesterday. I had everything the way I wanted it. It was perfect." Her voice was low, but had a razor sharp edge to it. She pressed the back of her thighs onto the edge of the desk and leaned on her palms. A smile danced on her lips, barely peeking through.

Eugene looked down, unsure of what to say. It hadn't been his idea to follow her, to catch her, to stay at hers. None of this was his fault, yet he felt horrible, "I'm… sorry, Carter. We didn't mean for this to happen to you. It hadn't happened to Fetch… and me."

Carter was taken aback, "What do you mean, 'Fetch and me'?" she asked.

"Delsin found us, for our powers. We were both in the truck. The one that crashed. But we decided we'd, I dunno', tag along with him."

"What, you just followed him? You're like his little test subjects, disciples, even."

Eugene screwed up his nose, "No… we're not- No, Delsin's our friend."

Rolling her eyes, Carter walked towards Eugene, hands on her hips, "Oh, of course. Just like how a teacher is your _friend_. How your boss is your _friend_. How the people at Curdun Cay were your _friend_. He has your best interest in mind, no doubt?" Carter chuckled.

"Well, yeah," Eugene mumbled, unable to look at Carter in the eyes. She was taller than him, older than him, and very pretty. She was incredibly intimidating. Perhaps more intimidating than Fetch.

"Whatever," said Carter, walking towards the bed Eugene had made for her. She climbed up the shelves and sat down, fluffing up her pillow.

"Look," Eugene began, walking after her, "this isn't my fault, you know? I didn't suggest any of this. I'm trying to help you though, I'm trying to make up for what _they_ did."

Carter raised her eyebrows, "Understood. Well, thank you," she leaned on the wall behind her, looking down to Eugene. She patted the blankets beside her for him to sit on.

Hesitant at first, Eugene moved forward and climbed up the shelving frame. He sat there, cross-legged, looking down at his hands and they fiddled with a piece of plastic.

"So, how long were you in Curdun Cay for?" Carter asked, trying to make conversation.

"A while."

"Uuuuh huuhhh," she sighed, "What happened there?"

Eugene shrugged, "Stuff."

"Why does Fetch hate it so much?"

"I don't know."

"Have you asked her?"

"No."

"What's it like in there?"

Eugene's head snapped up, "Look, can we just, not talk about it right now. I've been out of the place for barely a week."

Carter nodded forgivingly, and the two sat in silence.

"What happened this morning, with the toast?" Eugene asked, his eyes shifting back to his hands.

"I burnt it," replied Carter, smirking.

"That's not what I meant. You were like… really spaced out," explained Eugene, peeking at her over the rim of his glasses.

Carter's mouth dropped slowly, "Flashback. Of the night." She held up her arms as wires snaked around her wrists and hands.

"Mmm," Eugene hummed, his head lowering yet again, "sorry."

Looking away, Carter shrugged, "Meh. I just wish I would stop remembering it."

"Remembering what?" asked Eugene, leaning back in anticipation.

Carter looked over to him, scratching her knee caps with her finger nails. "Uh…" she began, her eyes darting around the room. She moved herself in closer to Eugene in case there was anyone that could hear them, "The night I got my powers… I was walking home from work, and I was attacked," she said slowly.

Her voice travelled down Eugene's neck, sending shivers through his spine, "A-Attacked?"

"Someone tried to… dominate me," Carter explained.

Eugene's eyes widened, his jaw relaxing as his mouth opened wide, "Oh, god, I'm… Wow, I'm so sorry."

Chuckling, Carter looked to the ceiling, "Don't be. Unless you're the one who did it."

Eugene glared at her, "I couldn't have. I was at-"

"Right, right. The big city."

Before they could speak any more, Eugene's phone began buzzing in his pocket. His hands moved in a frenzy, trying to find the device. He brought it in front of him, clicked the green button and put it on speaker, "Hey, Del."

"Eugene, hey! Good news, is Carter there?" Delsin called through the phone.

"Right here," replied Carter, moving her head in so that he could hear her clearly.

"Wonderful! Okay, so, I just checked in with Reggie, and it turns out the DUP's think we're in Rainier. There's only a few guys here from what we can see, so it should be all good for you guys to get over here."

Carter looked up at Eugene, worry filling her eyes. He gave her a reassuring smile, "Sure thing, Del. We'll meet you over there soon."

"Great, you'll either see us or hear us, catch ya' soon."

With that, Eugene hung up the phone and slipped it back into his pocket. He looked at Carter, who was just shaking her head while muttering 'No' repeatedly.

"Hey, hey." Eugene spoke calmly, trying to convince her that he was confident on the situation, "Everything will be alright. We had Delsin and Fetch, there's nothing that can hurt us."

"What if they heard the call."

Eugene sat back against the wall next to Carter, scratching his neck, "Well, they'll know where we are. Delsin wants to get to Augustine though. He's probably hoping they'll hear us." Carter was silent, pushing herself off the shelves and to the floor. She made her way to the concrete door, glancing over her shoulder to see if Eugene was coming with her.

Once they got outside, Eugene could see that Carter's face was red and blotchy. She dried her sweaty palms on her pants as the two walked to Waterfront in silence. Eugene kept glancing at Carter to make sure she was alright. Standing side by side with her made him realise that she was not as tall as he had thought. Barely an inch or two, which would mostly be made up by her boots.

Eugene found this as a perfect opportunity to take in Carter's features as they walked. He was able to peer above one of the arms of his glasses easily without being too noticeable. She had a ski ramp nose and high cheekbones, her pale skin littered with light brown freckles that matched the colour of her doe eyes. Her hair fell in layered waves of silver and white, light brown roots growing. One side of her hair was pushed behind her ears that had a little elf point to them. The ends of her hair barely reached her lips, which were thick, full and light pink.

The denim jacket Carter was wearing was short, showing off her thin waist. Eugene looked for a little too long, as Carter questioned his actions, "What are you doing?"

"You're very… thin," Eugene confessed. He looked to the ground, afraid that he had possibly upset her.

"Well, that's the thing with anxiety. It can make you stressed, and ill. I went through periods of not eating, just lying in bed hoping that nothing would hurt me."

"Did anything hurt you?" asked Eugene.

"Only myself."

The two walked the rest of the way in silence, both not looking at each other in shame and guilt. They could see neon trails in the air around them and could smell smoke. Eugene pulled out his phone to try and track where they were, Carter peering over his shoulder to get a view.

"Up there," Eugene pointed to an apartment complex a few blocks away, and the couple headed straight there. Eugene used his Video powers to glide up the walls, while Carter's wires slung her up. There, they met Fetch and Delsin peeking over the gutter on the other side.

"Hey, guys," whispered Eugene as he walked towards them. He crouched at the edge of the building and motioned for Carter to follow. Delsin and Fetch gave a nod of acknowledgement, before Delsin pointed to the ground. There below sat a Core Relay, glowing bright and blue. Delsin breathed through his nose, his head turning left to view a D.U.P. soldier aiming their gun straight to the Core Relay, reading to fire at anyone who would come near.

"Who wants it?" Delsin asked, motioning towards the soldier with his nose. The other three looked at each other.

"You found him, so you get him," Fetch decided.

Delsin smiled in approval, holding his palm out. He lined his arm up to shoot, smoke circling his forearm. Just as a ball of heat was released, Carter leapt for his shoulder, "Wait, Delsin!"

The smoke hit the soldier in the head, killing him instantly. This attracted the attention of other soldiers in nearby buildings. "We got 'em!" they heard a soldier shout, pointing in their general direction. In a matter of seconds the buildings surrounding them all had dozens of soldiers firing at them.

"Delsin, go for the Core Relay, we got this. Carter, you go with him. He'll need your help," Fetch ordered as she and Eugene started running across the rooftop to avoid bullets and attack.

Delsin and Carter jumped to the ground, taking out soldiers around them with their respective powers. "Cover me," said Delsin, as he began breaking open the Core Relay. Carter's wires swung around wildly, disarming some soldiers and killing others. As the Core Relay lit up, Delsin reached in his hands and the energy within the Core Relay pumped straight into his palms, through his arms and around his body. The energy lifted him in the air slightly as his new ability strengthened.

"Alright, C, what do I do?" Delsin asked, powering up the wires that spiralled around his wrists.

"Through out some line and pull it around like a whip," instructed Carter, pulling herself up the building and out of Delsin's way. Delsin flicked his wrist as though he was holding a yo-yo, as meters of wire rolled out of his hand. The wire was thin but dense, solidifying as he brought his arm around. The wire followed, taking soldiers with it. The wire flung them into the brick walls, destroying machinery and protective gear. Delsin threw out wire from his other hand and repeated the action, now killing the soldiers. He spun around quickly, reaching two hands in the air. The wire flew into the sky before it was brought down, cracking in the air as it crashed into soldiers on the ground. They were not yet dead, but definitely defenceless and vulnerable. Carter used the corner of the roof to hook her wire onto, running back and swinging on the wire like a grappling hook. She was moving too fast for the soldiers to get a clear shot, taking them out using her wire bullets. She retracted the wire and landed on the ground, turning back to face Delsin.

"This is so sweet," Delsin laughed as he spun the wires around him like a ribbon-dancer.

"Different lengths work for different situations," Carter explained, hooking onto the top of the roof again and launching herself into the air. Delsin followed, ready to attack the rest of the soldiers.

The two fought side by side, Delsin watching Carter intently to pick up on any tricks. "Use long lines of wire for distance attacks, and use it like a whip" she shouted over the blasts and bangs, releasing wires from both hands. While she did this, she brought her hands around each other. The wires spun round themselves, creating a thicker and stronger line. Carter used her whole body to pull the wire around, running left to keep the line swinging. The wire became more of a blade than a rope, slicing the soldiers as it passed them. It was not strong enough to cut through bone, but they were definitely left wounded. Delsin found another group of soldiers and copied the attack. While he was strong for a beginner, he merely bruised the soldiers and made them lose their balance, but it definitely slowed them down.

"When they're closer," Carter called, hurdling to the roof of injured soldiers, "use a smaller line. They'll work like nunchucks." Delsin ran after her, releasing about a foot of wire from each hand. He threw his arms around, taking out the soldiers that surrounded him. He was ruthless, destructive, and having too much fun. Wire was incredible, it was extraordinary. He was going to be unstoppable.

Once the waves of soldiers died down, Delsin went back to his Smoke abilities and the four finished them off quickly. They stood there, on the roof as the sun set over the horizon. Swept dripped off their faces and through their clothing as they breathed heavily. Bodies of soldiers covered the roofs around them, the heat they let off made it hard to breathe.

"That was… awesome!" Delsin huffed, jumping over several bodies to the edge of the roof. He looked into the alley below and at the blood stains he had created earlier. He felt a sense of pride, now desensitised of the blood, the death and the danger they were becoming.

"Wire's pretty fun," Carter agreed, sweeping the bodies out of her way to create a small path. Eugene and Fetch followed behind, looking around at what they had done.

"Look at us," Fetch chuckled, hopping onto the edge of the roof and slinging her arms over Carter's and Delsin's shoulders, "We're a team! A _family_."

Emotion washed through Carter as she remembered the past year of loneliness. While she figured it was nothing compared to what Fetch and Eugene had experienced at Curdun Cay, she couldn't help but wish that she had been in a better situation as well.

"You guys wanna head back?" Eugene asked, moving next to Delsin on the ledge.

The three laughed together, "Nah, I'm so pumped!" Fetch shouted, punching the air, "We should go and find the rest of these Core Relay's, while it's dark and hard to see the wires."

"They won't know what hit 'em," Delsin joked, as they stepped off the roof and landed onto the ground. Eugene pulled up the map on his phone, finding the next blue bulb and heading in the direction.

"Next stop, Uptown."

* * *

><p>Ahh, wow, it feels really good now that this chapter is written and out. It's a longer chapter than I usually have, so hopefully it isn't too boring. It's interesting to see the characters' reactions, and learning more about Carter is also great! This story has gotten a lot more attention than I expected it to, and while it isn't anywhere near what some people on this site receive, I appreciate every single Follow, Favourite and Review. Please, don't be scared to ask questions or mention errors. I am more than happy to know how to fix my writing! Until next time!<p>

EDIT: So, I was reading through the last few chapters, and I've decided that Carter is too hard to imagine properly, mostly because of her hair. It's pretty hard for me to describe well. I have created her on Sims to try and make it easier for you all to imagine her, so hopefully that comes in handy!

Tumblr account: c-m-n-infamous


	6. Ultimate Power

As daylight fell and night grew, the dim streetlights made it that much more difficult for the four conduits to be found. Most districts had all of their security wiped out, including tracker drones and scanners. This meant they were able to easily move around, taking out activist groups and killing drug sellers. It was child's play now, following a set of steps that meant they were in and out before people could catch them. Fetch still had her duty of taking drugs off the streets, and with most D.U.P. troops gone Eugene was free to help with whatever. Carter kept to her promise, taking care of people and killing anyone who tried to ruin peoples' lives.

However, tonight was dedicated to Delsin finding more Core Relay's. He was so excited over the thought of using each of his new powers to kill Augustine that he was basically forcing the others to come with him so he could show off. They did not mind though, they were each stronger in their respective abilities to worry.

"So, Carter," Delsin started, throwing his wire around like a yo-yo, "do I run out of this stuff? Or do I have a set amount so I don't have to worry about draining it like I do with the other powers?"

Carter thought for a moment. "It depends. If you're just throwing it out and retracting it back in, then no. But if you do like what I did with the art, where I left it on the wall and was no longer connected to it, then you do."

"How do I go about draining it?" asked Delsin, now waving the wire around like a whip, cracking it on surfaces and walls.

"Power lines, electrical cables, anything that kind of resembles Wire and has some elasticity to it. So you can't go and absorb a metal pole and hope for the best."

"Sounds good. And the white orbs that go through your lines? Will I get them?"

Jumping on a ledge, Carter pondered over the question. She knew what the orbs were, they were her energy going through. They were only there if the lines were still connected to her though, not if she was using them to fight or move around. The lines in the drains were a good example of this, and the orbs dissipated when the wire was cut. But would Delsin get them? "Probably not, it could be like a Prime Conduit Bonus or something."

Delsin looked down, his bottom lip folding over his chin in a frown, "No fuuuun," he whimpered.

"Oh, come on, D," Fetch slapped his shoulder, "You're able to absorb any power you want and you're sad because you don't get pretty colors going through one of them? When your other three powers are notoriously bright already?"

Eugene chuckled, smirking at Delsin, "You think you have it bad."

"You're right, I am pretty lucky."

As they were walking, Delsin's phone started ringing. "Hey Reggie," Delsin answered.

"Del, hey, have you found many Core Relay's?" responded Reggie.

"Only one so far, we're on our way to the next, over in Uptown."

Reggie hummed into the microphone, "Gotcha, so what's wire like?"

Delsin looked into the air around him, trying to see if he could find any way that Reggie could see them. He always managed to have an eye on Delsin, no matter how much equipment he destroyed, "Check this out." With that, Delsin released about twelve feet of wire into the air around him and over his head, spinning his arm and the wire like a propeller. Then the wire was withdrawn until only six feet was left, cracking it on the ground. He swung around to face the corner of a nearby building, aiming his arm at the top corner and firing the wire again, taking a run up before the wire pulled him in and swinging him over the edge onto the roof.

"Impressive," Reggie said, pleased with Delsin's new abilities, "That'll be great to go up against Augustine with."

Delsin jumped back onto the ground, walking over to the other three conduits, "Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I just have to power up a little more and I'm basically set!"

"Alright, well you get to it, I'll talk to you later," Reggie said, before the phone clicked.

The four went back on their way to find the next Core Relay. The air was cold and the night was dark. Uptown was a gloomy city, not very well lit except for the skyscraper that was the D.U.P. Headquarters. The Core Relay was not near the building though, so there would be no reason to go there just yet.

"Only about two blocks further," Eugene announced, slipping his phone into his pocket. The four lifted their guard, ready for any secret troops that would be patrolling the area. While a lot of the equipment had been dismantled already, the D.U.P. still put their new machinery in locations they were familiar with.

Fetch ran up ahead, "There, it's right there," she whispered, waving for the others to catch up.

"Nice goin', Fetch," Delsin complimented, walking up to her and patting her on the back.

"Well, what can I say?" she mused, giving a smirk to Delsin.

Eugene and Carter stood back, somewhat aware of what Delsin and Fetch had. They had both seen the broadcast Fetch had put on television. The cameras had been left rolling and everyone knew about Fetch and Delsin's little hook up. Carter and Eugene decided not to mess with it, despite Eugene's old feelings for Abigail. He thought it best to let them slide though, he was nothing compared to Delsin.

Delsin let out a Cinder Missile, breaking open the Core Relay. He ran in and absorbed the power quickly, as troops ran out behind buildings. They began shooting on foot and from the rooftops, throwing concrete bombs and shooting with snipers.

"Quick, cover me," Delsin called, powering up his Wire ability, "What can I do, C?"

Carter ran to him, protecting him from behind, "Uhh, throw out a ball of wire from your hand, and clench your fist quickly!" she ordered, performing the move herself.

Delsin brought back his left arm, mirroring Carter. Wire collected in their hands as a tight ball, about the size of a basketball. They threw the line out as though they were fishing, allowing troops to get in closer. Then, at the exact right moment, they squeezed their fist shut. The wire ball unravelled quickly, pieces breaking apart and making spikes that took out all of the troops that were about ten feet from where the wire hand landed. One main piece rolled back in, leaving small one-foot pieces of hard, straight wire on the ground and through soldiers' bodies.

"This is a situation where you would have to absorb some more wire if you used this too much," Carter explained, taking out the rest of the troops as they moved in. She sent out small pieces of hard wire, the wire bullets she had used when she first attacked the three conduits.

Delsin watched her for a second, before trying to execute the action. At first his bullets were not strong enough, falling on the ground and going limp, but as he kept shooting they strengthened. His shots came faster as well, taking out more troops in a smaller amount of time.

The D.U.P.'s were taken care of in about fifteen minutes, leaving the team in the dark night. Delsin was still running around, making sure they had killed all of the soldiers. His arms were shining with sprinkled drips of sweat. Fetch, Carter and Eugene sat at the table of a nearby café, resting their heads in their hands.

"What are you guys doing? Don't go to sleep, we have more to do!" cheered Delsin, jumping around them and trying to pump them up again.

Fetch waved her hands in front of her, not opening her eyes, "Nah, D, I'm so tired. Let's call it a day and get some shut-eye."

Carter and Eugene nodded, cooling their faces on the metal table. Delsin watched them, disappointed but understanding, "Alright. Are we all staying at yours, Eugene?"

Eugene's eyes fluttered open, lifting his head off the table slightly, "Uh, yeah. That's fine."

"Great!" Delsin shouted, slapping Eugene on the back to wake him up, "Then lets get moving before you all pass out."

Walking back to Eugene's lair was more of a slow, sombre trudge. Each of them tripped a couple of times during the walk, even Delsin had calmed down a lot now. Their once enthusiastic and optimistic attitude had been shot away with the D.U.P. troops, leaving only exhausted kids.

They didn't bother setting up any proper bedding for Delsin and Fetch. Being content with a couple of blankets and pillows, they comforted themselves in each other's embrace and fell asleep in seconds. Carter pulled her blankets down to the ground so she could enjoy the cold concrete floor, while Eugene summoned some angels to bring his mattress while he carried his blankets.

"Why do you have so much stuff?" Carter asked, curling into a ball in her new bed.

"Not mine," replied Eugene, slowly lifting his glasses off his nose and placing them on the ground next to him, "I either found them or they were already here when I got here."

Carter hummed, letting herself drift off to a dreamless sleep. They slept in silence, except for Delsin's obnoxious snoring, not waking for a good ten hours in the pitch black room.

* * *

><p><em>BZZZP! BZZZP! BZZZP! <em>Delsin's phone vibrated loudly on the ground, waking the four conduits up at once. Delsin rubbed his eyes, squinting at the phone in the dark room. It was already 10:43 in the morning, and Reggie was calling.

"Hey… What's up, Reggie?" Delsin's voice was slow and husky.

"Rise and shine, Banner Boy! How's my class A conduit?" Reggie's voice was bouncy and humiliating, donning the typical older brother tone.

"Don't call me that," Delsin argued, yawning into the microphone, "And it was good, we got the second Core Relay."

Reggie's breath was loud and fast, obviously excited by his brother's new found powers, "Oh, and what can you do now?"

"I learnt how to shoot bullets and take lots of troops out in one shot."

"Sounds good, so are you looking for more today?"

"Should be, I'll call you when we're done."

"Great, talk soon." The phone clicked.

Eugene was up by now, pulling his bed back to his room. Fetch stretched in the blankets, groaning quietly, "What was that about?" she whispered.

"Reggie," Delsin responded, lifting Fetch off the blankets and into a nearby chair, "asking about the powers."

Fetch nodded, curling up into the chair and relaxing as Delsin packed up the bed and put it in the corner. Carter was still napping in her bed, her head half covered by the blankets and her hair in all directions.

Delsin walked over to Eugene, nudging him lightly. "You should wake her up," he said, smirking and pointing to Carter.

Eugene's face filled with heat, looking up at Delsin over his glasses, "Why me?"

"Because, who wouldn't want to see your face when they first woke up?" said Delsin. His comment came out sounding a little sarcastic, but he meant it to be serious.

Not buying it, Eugene walked away and continued packing away his stuff, occasionally glancing at Carter. He looked at Delsin, who was wiggling his eyebrows, and scoffed, "Fine. Only because I need to pack away her blankets."

"_Her_ blankets, hey?" Fetch joked, sliding the chair over to them. Eugene glared at her, giving no response.

Unsure of how to wake someone up sincerely, Eugene crouched by the bed. Carter was snoring lightly, her breath tickling Eugene's ankles. He watched her for a few seconds, admiring her, before tapping her shoulder gently, "H-Hey, Carter. It's time to wake up… We have to go…" he mumbled, barely loud enough for her to hear. Carter stirred lightly, lifting her head from underneath the covers. Her eyes squinted as she looked up at his face, a smile forming as she closed her eyes and nodded slowly.

"Mmm hmmm." Her arms lifted the blanket off her body, yawning as she rolled herself over onto her stomach. She propped herself up with her knees, stretching her arms out and yawning again. Her head dropped, hair falling on her face as she gathered the energy to stand.

"Mornin'," Delsin called, while wheeling Fetch around the room. She squealed in delight as she pulled her knees to her chest and gripped the arm rests for support.

"Careful, please," Eugene asked of them, looking at the cables and equipment covering the floor. He looked back to Carter as she was lifting herself up, offering a hand for balance. Her fingertips brushed against his palm, her cold skin causing Eugene's arm to tense up. His body filled with heat again, ears burning.

The four walked into the center of the lair again, sitting in their circle. "So, what's the plan?" Fetch asked, pressing her hands on her knees and leaning forward.

Eugene pulled out his phone and clicked it on, swiping the screen a few times before staring at it. "Well?" Delsin asked impatiently, tapping his legs with his fingers.

"Denny Park," Eugene replied, handing the phone around.

Delsin's face dropped is dismay, "Denny Paaaark?" he groaned, "But Denny Park has the massive concrete structure still. And that thing's hell to get around."

"They ain't stupid, D," Fetch sighed, "They got the advantage there and they're takin' it. Props to them for not bein' so stupid for once."

Without saying a word, Delsin stood and interlaced his fingers, pushing his palms forward to crack the joints, "Well, let's get a move on, shall we?" he said, heading over to the hatch in the ceiling. He put his palms up, letting out wire that clung to the edges. Delsin looked at the three as they walked towards him, winked, and then swung himself up and out of the lair.

"How the hell do I get out of _here_?" Fetch mumbled to herself, realising that the distance from the ground to the ceiling was about double her height. Without missing a beat, Eugene and Carter squatted slightly and put out their hands to create a little step for Fetch. She glared at them, rolling her eyes and standing on their hands. They lifted her up as Delsin reached in for her hand, pulling her out of the lair.

"After you," Eugene said, moving out of Carter's way. She looked at him for a second, before reaching out a hand and grabbing Eugene's wrist. He began to jerk back but could not get out of her grip fast enough, as she swung from wire and jumped through the hatch, throwing Eugene out in front of her.

Eugene fell on the ground with a thud, rolling away from the hatch. He stood up slowly, brushing off his clothes, a look of obvious displeasure smeared across his face as he adjusted his glasses. Delsin looked at Eugene and winked again, Eugene's eyebrows knitting together.

The four walked to Denny Park in silence, taking in the noon sun and watching the people around them. They were quiet at first, until they recognised them. Some congratulated them for what they were doing to the D.U.P.'s, others threw curses and bad remarks, and some took photographs. The conduits ignored them though, going about their business as they would. How could the public be so rude and naïve? Did they not realise the control they were under for no reason? Conduits were not criminals. Criminals were criminals, and whether they had the conduit gene or not had no correlation to their criminalistic behaviour. The four did not second guess themselves. If their mission meant harming a few civilians, they would do it in order to stop hundreds of getting killed.

The Core Relay was in the same location that the Mobile Command Center was in before Delsin destroyed it, guarded tightly by hundreds of D.U.P. soldiers. The conduits did not have to get too close to be spotted though, sending the troops into a frenzy. Some shot at them from afar, while others ran in close.

"Delsin," Carter called, powering up her abilities, "this place is a jungle gym. Wire will come in real handy here," she shouted, taking down troops all around her.

Delsin nodded, running to a fallen power line and absorbing it through his palm. He took off towards the Core Relay, using his wire to swing himself around groups of soldiers. Flinging himself onto one for the levels, he threw a wire ball at the Core Relay and clenched his fist. The wire stuck through the machine, as Delsin pulled his arm back. The metal covering was ripped off one side of the Core Relay, exposing the inside. Troops continued shooting Delsin as he ran towards the Core Relay, his arm in front of him ready to absorb the power.

In a matter of seconds, Delsin could feel the heat of new potential strength in his fingers, ready to use it. He looked to Carter to explain what he could now do, watching her fight off troops with a very fine technique. She danced around them, taking them out quickly while dodging bullets. She was far better at close range fighting than distance, from what he knew. There seemed to be so much more to Wire that she was not showing, but he was dying to see it.

The minute Carter was able to escape, she launched herself onto the level next to Delsin, "There's a lot of guys now, so what you have to do is go on the ground," she explained, as the two leapt off. They landed back to back, watching the oncoming wave of troops as they approached. "Alright, so what you have to do is bring your hands in front of you and cross them over," Carter said, showing him how, "get some wire moving around your arms, get it going nice and fast." As she demonstrated what to do, her arms were covered in thick, black wires spinning furiously around her arm, from her hands to her shoulders. Delsin copied her, moving his feet apart, ready to react.

"The next part is a little tricky," Carter confessed, walking away from Delsin and slowing her wires down, "On my count, you have to pull in your arms quickly and jump in the air, while also sending the wires up your body and to your feet. Then, when you're up, the wires will create a platform while also moving around the place, grabbing soldiers and throwing them away or killing them mid-air, got it?" Carter jumped to the edge of a building, calling Eugene and Fetch to get out of the way as well.

Delsin stared at her for a few moments, trying to take in the series of actions he had to complete. He gave a slow nod, eyes staring at the troops around him. Then, as he felt that the wires had enough power, he jumped into the air while pulling his arms back, elbows at his side. He clenched his fists and threw them down, straightening his arms as the wires covered his body. They moved to his legs until they rested on the bottom of his shoes, reaching down to the ground frantically. Some kept him in the air, but the rest jerked violently at the soldiers, clawing at the air, trying to grab anything in their reach.

The attack lasted for a minute or two, killing every single D.U.P. soldier that was within thirty feet of him. The wires cracked in the air as they moved, desperate to grab anyone, anything. The wires moved as though they had a mind of their own, and they were hungry. Delsin watched in delight, thrilled with his new ability. As the wires slowed and retracted, Carter, Fetch and Eugene made their way back to Delsin. Their mouths were agape, eyes sparkling in amazement.

"My, my," Fetch sung, massaging Delsin's shoulders, "look at what we have here." She wiggled her eyebrows, chuckling to herself. Delsin smirked, slinging an arm over her shoulders. He pinched her nose with his free hands.

Eugene walked up to Delsin and high-fived him, "Delsin, that was incredible!" he said, looking around at the soldiers lying motionless on the ground.

The air was still around them, leaves falling to the ground slowly. They were the only people around, as the soldier's had cleared the area when they set up the Core Relay's. Carter moved inwards, eyes beaming, "Delsin, that was so good! You've become super strong," she told him, looking at what he had done around them.

"Guys," said Delsin, walking forward. He looked towards the ground, then to the air, before turning around to face his three friends, "I think I'm ready."

* * *

><p>Sooo, Delsin has finally powered up his Wire abilities, which means it's time for him to face Augustine! I'm not sure if I'll go into much detail of that, or if I'll lengthen it out and add in some more things before it. If you have any preferences, please let me know!<p>

Also, if you want to better imagine Delsin's special move, check out the concept art for wire for the game. If you see an image with nine different drawings, number 7 is the one I tried to describe. The others are probably Prime Conduit moves.

Thanks for reading, don't forget to Follow, Favourite and Review. Until next time!


	7. Betrayed

**WARNING: INCLUDES SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION.**

* * *

><p>As a reward to themselves, Delsin, Fetch, Eugene and Carter relaxed outside a nearby sandwich shop while having lunch. The day was warm and the air blew softly, white fluffy clouds rolling in from the west. The four conduits watched the world move on around them, citizens rushing to places, people talking about the government and what was happening, their position on it all. Some believed that what they were doing was right, that Seattle needed someone to stand up for them and Delsin was the perfect guy. Others thought they should just leave the government to do their job, and that they were doing the right thing. Delsin and Fetch exchanged a few glances when hearing this, unable to comprehend how people could be so blind to what was happening.<p>

"It's fine until it's them getting locked up," Fetch grumbled, sinking her teeth into the soft bun. Tomato juice dripped onto the paper bag resting on the table underneath her.

The four sat in silence until their meals were finished, standing up and walking in the direction of Downtown, right beside Denny Park. It was the next district the four conduits had to go to. However, Carter explained that she was not interested in meeting with Augustine right now, and so she would meet them when they were done.

"What will you do?" Eugene asked, as the four got close to the district border.

Carter shrugged, slowing down her walking pace, "I don't know. Patrol the area? Make sure everyone's cool and the D.U.P.'s aren't stirring more shit? Maybe take out some activists here or there?" She listed her possibilities on her fingers as she stopped walking.

"Okay, well, we'll catch up with you again soon," Delsin smiled, opening his arms and walking towards her to give her a hug, "Thanks for everything, Carter."

Fetch moved in and joined in, while Eugene watched on, "We won't be too long," said Fetch.

The three looked over to Eugene, who was looking at his feet. Carter walked forward and forced a hug while Eugene stood frozen, "Thanks, Eugene."

"Yeah…" Eugene mumbled, patting her back with one hand lightly, "It's c-cool."

Carter waved the three off as they moved into the district, turning on her heels and heading back in the direction they came. She thought about Waterfront, her apartment there, and whether the D.U.P.'s had trashed it or not. Thinking on it brought her to the decision to inspect the area, shooting out a line and connecting it to a nearby rooftop. She took a run up, jumping into the air while simultaneously retracting the wires, flying by buildings and roads.

It took only a few minutes for her to get to Waterfront, peeking around corners and watching out for attacks. She soon realised that the area was now clear and she was able to walk a little more comfortably. Who knew if the government knew it was her in the apartment? All of her belongings were in there from before her faked suicide, including a few photographs and documents, but would they assume that she was the new conduit inside?

Carter scaled the side of the building by hand, grabbing onto window sills and the edge of balconies. She thought to leave her powers idle rather than make a scene of them. The window to her apartment was locked shut, the drapes pulled across. Nervous, she drew a small piece of thin wire from her fingertips and placed it next to the keyhole of the window. The wire moved inside, wiggling about until the key clicked. The window slowly swung outward, wind picking up the drapes and parting. She looked inside, hand gripping the balcony rail in case she needed to jump off. The room was dark and cool, the lights off. She took a step inside. The wood panels squeaked under her feet, causing her to freeze. Her heart was beating loud in her chest. She could feel her arms shaking, her knees going weak.

The room inside was destroyed. Pictures thrown off the cabinets, couch cushions metres from the lounge room, holes in the walls looking for any hidden secrets. Carter looked around the apartment, her jaw hanging open. She could feel tears itchy at her eyes, breaking free and running down her face. She fell to the ground, running plaster dust through her fingers.

Angry and scared, Carter pulled herself off the ground and moved to the kitchen. The burnt toast had been tossed across the ground and the toaster had been tipped and dented in the side. The fridge had been pulled out from the wall, the door hanging on by the hinges. They had made the house unliveable. Everything was damaged or destroyed. She moved to her bedroom only to find her mattress ripped open and across the floor. The bed frame had been smashed with concrete, large pieces surrounding a hole in the centre. A pillow had been pierced and feathers thrown about.

The mess was overwhelming. Carter grabbed at her jacket sleeves, rubbing them between her fingers. She was afraid to move quickly, scared of what could be around. She kept flicking her head though, thinking that someone was always there in the corner of her eye. Her vision was blurry through her tears. She felt beaten, ruined, everything she owned had been ripped apart and splayed across the floor in front of her. She had no idea where to begin. Everything was unrepairable. She walked back to the lounge room, tipping the couch the right way up, revealing a split straight across the back cushions. She grabbed a pillow and threw it on the springs of the couch, falling onto it. The pressure caused feathers to explode from the seams of the pillows, reducing Carter to hysterics.

She sat there, her breath quivering, for half an hour. She could not make herself move, only cry. The sun moved down in front of the window, reflecting off something resting on the kitchen bench. She had not noticed it beforehand, but it was making itself known. Carter managed to slide herself off the cushion and onto the ground, pressing her hand against the tipped coffee table and lifting herself up. She used the furniture around her to keep her balance, falling onto the bench. Resting on top was a dark mahogany box. She flicked a piece of metal and opened the lid. Inside sat piles of drawings she had created over the past year. They showed the man that had attacked her, face covered with shadows. Carter stood in shock. She had hidden this box from herself a few months ago because it made her sick, as it was right now. She hunched her back, curling into a ball trying not to be sick.

A few moments of rocking herself made her stomach settle and she was able to stand again. She touched the edges of the box, feeling the grains under her fingertips. Something crumbled underneath, as Carter noticed a piece of paper sticking out. She lifted the box and saw a note.

_Bio-Terrorist,_

_We have who you want._

_You can have him - have your justice._

_We only want something in return._

_Bring your friends to me and I will let you do what you must._

_Be at Curdun Cay Station by noon tomorrow, or else you will lose your chance._

_We shall meet soon,_

_B.A._

Carter lifted the note, shivers running through her body. She knew exactly who they were talking about, and she wanted in. She quickly rummaged through the room for an eraser, where she completely rubbed out the line about bringing her friends and the meeting time. She then held the note firmly to her face, revealing a thin black box underneath. The box showed the number 05 in red. Carter leaned in towards it, holding the wooden box in one hand and the note in the other. The box beeped and showed 04, then a second later flicked to 03. Carter's eyes widened when she realised what it was, throwing the note on the ground and turning her body to the window. She threw out a piece of wire and lunged forward, kicking the window open as she flew out over the balcony. As she fell to the ground, she heard a loud _BANG_ as thick smoke filled the room and floated out of the window. It was a strong gas bomb, with the intent to knock her unconscious and leaving her in the room for someone to find her.

The sound of choppers brought Carter to the realisation that they had been waiting for her, and had probably seen her by now. Troops poured out from the alleys surrounding her and the rooftops above.

"_Don't move, or we'll kill you,_" a troop roared as they circled her. Carter stood for a moment, eyeing the soldiers around her, before lifting an arm in the direction of a nearby rooftop. Bullets reverberated around her, stinging her skin where they hit. She pulled in her wire as she flew forward to the rooftop where she was met by a soldier wielding a concrete bat. She had no time to react as the soldier swung the bat forward, hitting her in the chest and winding her significantly. She fell to the ground, still clinging the wooden box, as the soldier brought the end of the bat down on her face. Everything went black.

* * *

><p>"<em>REGGIE, NOOOOO!<em>" Reggie's body, encased in thick concrete growing around him, plummeted into the icy water below. Small bubbles formed on the surface as Delsin looked on, hoping to see his brother emerge through the calm waves. A few moments went and the bubbling dissipated. Delsin sniffled, a new fury rising through his body. First, his tribe was shoved onto their deathbeds, but now… Augustine had gone too far. She had to be _killed_, and Delsin knew it was his right to do it.

_'I swear to god, this bitch will be dust when I am done with her,'_ Delsin thought, pulling himself up off the ledge. Adrenaline pumped through his body faster than ever before. The next hour went by in a hazy blur of anger and madness. Delsin was in a frenzy, attacking Augustine constantly. He performed Orbital Drop after Orbital Drop, trying to beat some sense into her. How did she not realise what she was doing? How the _hell_ could the government be funding someone, some_thing_, like her? She was a monster, wreaking havoc on anything that posed as a tiny threat. He had to end her reign and face the doom that was Delsin Rowe.

The crumbling of the concrete island was all over the news, portraying Delsin as a sinister murderer fuelled by pure evil. He was devastated; that was not him, that was Augustine. She was the concrete bitch who made him do this. This was not his fault. It would never be his fault.

Delsin, Fetch and Eugene sat in silence on a rooftop in Waterfront, not too far from Carter's apartment. They eyed Augustine's Headquarters, imagining and replaying images in their head of what they would do to the building and the people inside if given even the slightest chance. This was no longer just Delsin's fight to get Augustine's powers. Delsin wanted revenge.

"How big do you think the concrete is that has been shoved up her ass?" Delsin asked sternly, pressing his knuckles into his thighs. He kept his eyes locked on the building, taking in the side he could see, trying to become familiar with the layout. Fetch and Eugene chuckled lightly, causing a smile to creep on the edges of Delsin's lips. He was glad to have the other two with him. They were support he needed, and his new moral compass. Now that he would no longer have Reggie telling him that his decisions were stupid, he had to rely on his friends. Speaking of friends…

"Where do you guys think Carter is?" Eugene asked, fixing his glasses on his nose. Fetch turned to him, raising her eyebrows and smirking. Eugene made sure not to look at her.

"That's a good point, actually," said Delsin, standing up on the roof. He looked into the direction of her apartment, point to it, "Her place is there. She might have gotten it back?"

"Yeah, hopefully," Fetch said, "It's a nice place. She didn't deserve bein' kicked out."

Delsin looked to her in surprise, "Is that a nice comment I hear? Directed straight at Carter?"

Fetch pursed her lips and folded her arms, "I'm just sayin'. No one deserves to be taken outta their house. They probably didn't even have a warrant."

The three scaled the rooftops, now uncaring if they were seen. They could take care of themselves, and every little fight they won brought them a little closer to overthrowing Augustine. It had been a few days since they had last seen Carter. The day they parted, the three conduits had spent a few hours running around. Eugene and Fetch had gotten themselves captured, but Hank seemed to know where they were after Delsin chased after him for a bit. However, Hank had lied to Delsin and instead led him to Augustine. They fought, Augustine fled, Delsin killed Hank for betraying him and they spent the next couple of days mourning Reggie's death. But Delsin had never been so focused on getting to Augustine until now. He was obsessed with exposing her to the world and bringing her down on television, her head on his new concrete stake. It would be beautiful.

Moonlight shone on the window to Carter's apartment from the same direction as it had the first night they met her. After realising the window was locked, Delsin did not hesitate to break it open. He had no concern for small problems like this anymore.

Stepping inside, the three were hit instantly with the stench of gas. It burned in their lungs and sent them running for the window, opening it up and once again enjoying oxygen and fresh air. They moved around the apartment, holding their breath as they went from window to window and opened them wide. The night air trickled in and replaced the horrid odour, moonlight lighting up the room slightly to show some of the destruction. Fetch sent neon beams across the ceiling, lighting the room significantly. The three were dumbstruck when they saw what had happened to the room. They walked around slowly, stepping over broken furniture and rubbish.

"Delsin…" Eugene mumbled quietly, waving for him to come closer. He held the note in his hand that Carter had found earlier, stained a light green from the thick gas. Delsin and Fetch stood beside him and read the note.

"_'who you want'_?" Fetch asked, looking to Delsin for answers.

Delsin's eyes widened as the sudden realisation hit him, "Oh _god_," he said, bringing a hand to his head and rubbing his temple.

"What's wrong?" Eugene questioned, concern causing his voice to break. Fetch looked on in confusion.

"Her powers," began Delsin, resting on the kitchen bench, "were activated at night. By a man. He tried to hurt her-"

"What, like, rob her or something?" Fetch interrupted.

"No, no. He tried to… _hurt_ her. M-Mentally." Delsin tried to explain the situation without going into much detail. He had no idea if Carter would be alright with Fetch and Eugene knowing, but he had to tell them.

Eugene brought a hand to his mouth, dizzy with surprise. He felt gross, sick to the stomach, and so scared for her. His breathing quickened, loud enough to catch Delsin and Fetch's attention. They moved to him, taking an arm each.

"Hey, Eugene, are you okay?" Fetch asked as they lead him towards the couch. They sat him on the ground and he rested his back on the couch frame. He nodded slowly.

"So, that's why she's always paranoid," Delsin said, pausing for thought. "Eugene. Get out your phone."

Eugene's head shot to Delsin in surprise, "What? You think we can just _text_ her? You think she could just be at a coffee place or something? Look at this place!" he shouted, trembling, "She was attacked, Delsin. And now Augustine has her."

Delsin rubbed Eugene's shoulder, "I know, dude, calm down. I want you to see if you can track her phone."

Eugene slowed his breathing down, now understanding Delsin's intentions. He took out his phone and opened the GPS app, "Nothing. She's offline. They've turned the phone off. I'll check the last log."

The three sat in silence as Eugene clicked away on his phone, opening and closing pages. His hands were shaking, hoping that the log would not tell them what he could not hear.

The last location the phone recorded showed up on the screen. Delsin and Fetch leaned in to view the map. Fetch and Eugene's heart's dropped. Fetch breathed through her nose, "She's at Curdun Cay."

Delsin's shoulders fell, "_What?!_" he screamed, his lips pulling back to show his teeth.

Fetch and Eugene looked down at the floor, focusing on their feet. They could not speak, could not move. They had an inner conflict of wanting to make sure Carter was okay and not wanting to refresh the memories of the hell hole.

"We have to get her!" Delsin demanded, slamming a fist on the coffee table and leaving the print of his hand in smoke.

Eugene and Fetch were unmoving, struck still in fear.

"What are you guys doing? She'll _die_ if we don't do anything!"

Eugene looked at Delsin like he was an idiot, "Yes, Delsin. That's what happens at Curdun Cay. People die. You can't save them all."

Delsin was taken aback, "Eugene, she- she's your friend. You can't just leave her because you're _scared_."

Eugene looked back at the ground, "Yes I can."

Delsin was speechless. Here in front of him were two of the strongest conduits around, who devoted their time to helping people, yet they could not even help Carter, "I can't believe you two. You're both so _weak_! You disgust me!" he spat, standing up quickly, snatching the note from Eugene and heading to the window. "If you guys can't work up the courage to do this, then neither of you are strong enough to fulfil your own missions." With that, Delsin used his smoke powers to fly across rooftops, leaving Fetch and Eugene in the apartment.

"I don't wanna go back," Fetch whispered after some time. Her eyes stung with tears as she sat there, shakes running through her body every few seconds.

Still looking to the floor, Eugene came to a realisation, "He has no idea how to get there."

"Are you kidding me?" Fetch sighed, her head falling back. She knew what this meant.

The two conduits stood in unison, Eugene slipping his phone and the note into his pockets. They moved to the window slowly, reluctant to go anywhere but knew they would have to catch up with Delsin quickly. They took in a deep breath before bright pink and blue beams soared through the sky.

It was only minutes before they caught up to Delsin. They tried to call for him to stop, but it was no use. He wouldn't have any of it. Eugene summoned a couple of angels that flew in and tackled Delsin to the ground, and Fetch wrapped some neon around him to keep him still. He wrestled and wriggled for a few seconds before calming down.

"What do you want?" he breathed heavily, trying to sit himself up.

Fetch began to explain, but she was interrupted by a figure running towards them, "Who's that…?" she whispered, pointing to the black silhouette in the distance. She let Delsin out of the neon, eyes fixed on the being as they jumped over fences effortlessly. The three stood ready to attack, before the being jumped in the air and started soaring toward them.

"It's her!" Delsin cheered, waving his arms around him. Carter flew in with a smile on her face, landing in front of them.

"Hey, guys," she grinned, opening her arms to receive hugs from them all. The three conduits stood back in shock.

"What are you doing here?" Eugene said happily, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I broke out," Carter replied, putting her hands on her hips.

Fetch and Eugene looked at her in disbelief. "What? Out of Curdun Cay?" Fetch asked?

Carter shook her head, "No. Only the truck. Why would I have been at Curdun Cay?" she chuckled, an edge to her voice.

"Your phone," said Delsin, "said you were in Curdun Cay."

"Yeah. They took my phone," Carter confessed, "But I got out!"

Fetch smiled, "Great. You can get a new one. Lets go!"

"Wait, guys," Carter held her hands up as the three turned to leave, "When I was… in the truck, I heard two of the soldiers that were driving talking. They said Augustine was at Curdun Cay waiting for me, but that she was still pretty battered since you fought with her."

The three nodded as Carter continued, "Well, I was thinking we could kind of ambush her. So, I go in, pretend to surrender, and then _wham bam_, we destroy her!" she punched a fist into the air.

Delsin looked to Fetch and Eugene, who did not look happy. They thought they were going to get out of having to go to Curdun Cay, but now Carter wanted them to go anyway. But they remembered the letter, and what the trip would really mean for Carter.

Fetch sighed, "Fine. We'll go with you. You'll need us to show you the way anyway."

A smile spread across Carter's face, "Great! Let's get going!"

The three moved up to the north of Seattle, leaping over rooftops until they go to the bridge. It was easy for Delsin, Fetch and Eugene to get across, but Carter was not able to with her wires and so had to be carried by one of Eugene's angels.

The road from Seattle snaked through a forest and to the direction of Salmon Bay. Delsin asked if they could move through the bay quickly, not wanting to think about Reggie too much. They all agreed, dashing quickly for miles until the road beneath them reduced to gravel. Fetch and Eugene slowed to a halt, looking around them. The last time they had gone here, they were in a truck and could not see much around them. But now, they could see the rolling hills and smell the scent of pine trees. Their shoes squeaked on the moist dirt that had once been covered with snow as they walked, powered down now.

"They can find us a lot easier if we're usin' our powers," Fetch explained.

"Easy! How about this," Carter began. Without continuing, wires ejected from her palms and wrapped around the other three conduits hands, just as before so that they couldn't use their powers.

"Oh, good idea, C," Delsin smirked, inspecting the cuffs.

Eugene and Fetch also checked out the cuffs, their stomachs churning. "Carter," Fetch began, walking forward, "These look… almost the same as the cuffs they use in Curdun Cay."

Carter chuckled, "Really?" she said with a look of pride on her face.

"Yeah," Fetch's eyes were fixed on Carter now, brows furrowed, "I think I could say they _are_ the same."

"Are you accusing me of something?" Carter asked, giving a playful tug to Fetch's cuffs, jerking her forward.

"Agh- no, I'm not. I'm just makin' a statement," replied Fetch, pulling the wire back.

The four continued to walk to Curdun Cay. It was only about a mile away now, and they were moving at a decent pace. They reached the Station in about twenty minutes, slowing down as they approached the entrance.

"I think I still know my way around the place," Fetch said, leading Delsin and Eugene to the side of the facility.

Carter paused, "I don't know how long the wire will reach."

Fetch turned to face her, "You mean, you've never tested the length?"

"Nope," confessed Carter, looking to the ground, "I was always too worried I would get caught."

"Well, how long could you get it to?" Delsin asked.

Carter tapped her chin, "Umm… Well, I know I could fill my apartment and still have quite a bit left."

"_What_?" Fetch's voice was harsh now, "You're telling me you could fill a four-room apartment with wire, thin, elastic wire, and _still_ have some left?!"

"Yeah," Carter nodded, a little confused with how Fetch was acting now.

"But, you've only had Wire for a year I thought. That's not a long time to train, especially without proper facilities. And it isn't like you've had to attack people heaps-"

"Excuse me, Fetch," Carter interrupted, her fists tightening around the wire. The cuffs tightened as well, hurting the three conduits, "But I have told you the honest truth. Ask Delsin. He saw my memories, he knows I'm telling the truth."

"She- is," Delsin managed through winces. He bit the side of his lip to try and deal with the pain.

"Good. Now if anything happens, I'll just draw you guys back, alright?" explained Carter, letting wire fall at her feet.

"Will you- give us a- warning?" Eugene huffed, bending over his hands.

"The orbs. I'll send a continuous white beam going through. That way, you'll know that I've either left or I need help."

The three conduits nodded, not saying anything about the cuffs in case they upset her further. As they went to go, Eugene managed to give her a sympathetic smile, sure that she would be nervous of what she was facing.

As the three dashed across the walls, Carter walked up to the large gates of Curdun Cay Station. Two D.U.P. soldiers walked in from either side of her. "Name?" they asked, one holding a clipboard.

"Carter Nelly," she responded, "Augustine wanted to see me. I have something for her," she explained, holding the wire up in her hand as it trailed out. The soldiers nodded in unison, and the one without a clipboard moved forward to the side of the door. He punched in a code on the keypad, as the massive concrete began to swing inwards. A tunnel of icy wind blew against Carter's body, causing her to tense up. For a second the wire stiffened, before she realised and let enough out to let it go slack.

One step after the other, Carter entered the Station slowly. The area inside was large and open without a roof, a road pressed in the dirt below from trucks rolling in and out. The walls were lined with troops every few feet. One moved forward to take her to a door to the left of the garages, motioning for her to follow him in.

It was hard to describe the Station. It looked as though it should have been sturdy and supportive, but all Carter felt was cold and isolated. It was definitely a detention center, no doubting that. The soldier lead her down corridors and halls until they reached a large room, lined with many troops.

Another soldier walked up to her, glancing down at the wire from her hands. His head snapped back up and he turned around, walking briskly. He held his gun on an angle, already loaded. Carter continued to follow, her shoes tapping against the concrete on the ground. The soldier lead through a small door and into a tight passage, made completely of a metal cage-like structure. Large fans sat just outside the metal frames. They blew warm air through the passage, tossing Carter's hair in all directions. She didn't mind though, at least she was a little more comfortable. She thought about the weather outside. The cool air, the nippy breeze. She thought about Delsin and Fetch, and Eugene. She looked down at the wires that pumped white light in even intervals.

The Station was situated on the edge of a small cliff, the ground below lined with massive trees that hid the ground. Outside, a quick gust clung to the edge of the building, pushing the three conduits along.

"How much further?" Delsin called over the wind, his feet sinking into the mud.

Fetch jogged ahead slightly, peering around a corner, "Not much. We're passed the entrance."

Delsin scoffed in dissatisfaction, "The _entrance_?"

"Yep. This place is massive, dude. It can hold hundreds of conduits," Fetch explained as she waited for them to catch up. Eugene trailed slowly, obviously less fit than the other two. Still, he was keeping good pace. "You know, I don't like this," said Fetch, holding up her hand cuffs. "I don't like how similar they are to the ones in Curdun Cay. I don't like that they're on this tight. I don't like not being able to rely on my powers," she complained.

"Well, I'm sorry, Fetch. But I think it's worth it right now," Delsin argued, his voice rising as the turned the corner. Fetch walked in silence, trying desperately to move her hands even slightly, but it felt as though the cuffs tightened with each movement she made.

After about fifteen minutes of walking, the trio reached a heavy door with a long grey handle on it. Fetch pressed the side of her head against the concrete, straining her ears to try and hear anything over the wind. She decided that it was fine to enter, stepping away from the door. Eugene and Delsin watched on from a distance, ready to run if they were to be attacked, while Fetch brought her cuff up into the air and slammed it onto the door handle, forcing it down and pushing against the concrete with her entire body. The boys noticed her struggling and moved to help her, hot air greeting them.

The same metal cage walkways stood inside. Apprehensive, the three conduits crept inside quietly, the concrete door sliding shut behind them. Their eyes widened as they suddenly realised that the door would cut the wire, but it was too late. The wire sat thick and dead on their hands, still tight, while the rest flung around the building towards Carter.

The soldiers that lined the walls of every room in Curdun Cay made sure not to close the doors behind Carter as she had explained to them that it would cut the line, however she soon realised she had forgotten to mention it to the three conduits when she noticed the wires had begun retracting swiftly. There was hardly any line left when she shouted to the soldier escorting her to run, the end of the wire leaping at her as it pulled in. The wire flung wildly around the metal cages before sinking into her palm.

"Shit. Shit shit shit," Carter said to herself, moving past the soldier and down the hallway.

"Excuse me, miss, but what seems to be the problem?" This was no doubt the nicest D.U.P. soldier ever, but he must have known why she was here. Otherwise he probably would have stopped her by now.

"Where's the nearest door to outside the Station?" asked Carter, wires spinning around her arms readily. The soldier did not even hesitate as he began running down the hallway, his boots clanging against the metal. The heat of the room and her stress made Carter's clothes stick to her.

They had been running for less than three minutes before they reached a corner, turning it quickly and falling into the side wall. There, at the end of the corridor stood the three conduits, frozen still. Carter launched her wires that spun around their hands, replacing the old wire as it fell to the floor and forming new cuffs.

"Carter!" Delsin called, receiving glares from Fetch and Eugene. Delsin bit his bottom lip, shrugging slightly.

"We should keep moving," Carter said to the soldier, not even looking at the other three. They walked in silence, with Carter occasionally tugging on the wire to keep them walking at the right speed.

"We're going through the walls of Curdun Cay Station," the soldier explained to Carter, leading her through twists and turns. Fetch glanced over to Delsin, who looked just as confused as Fetch felt. Why was the soldier talking to Carter so calmly, when she was there not only without hand cuffs but also using her powers in front of him. He looked so comfortable and trusting, walking slightly in front of her and only looking back to make small comments.

A sinking feeling ran through the three conduits' bodies. No, they couldn't be. After all this time, helping Carter so much, and she doing the same, there was no way in hell she could be doing this to them.

"We're the fucking _prize money_," Delsin snarled, his head low. Eugene's shoulders slumped in defeat as they had to keep following, out of risk they might get their heads blown off while they were this vulnerable.

Up ahead stood another large concrete door, like the one to the outside. The soldier opened the door with ease, leading the four into a massive room. Concrete lined the walls and made platforms around the room.

The three conduits walked behind Carter, a few feet away. They held their cuffs up to block the bright beams of light above them, letting their eyes adjust. Squinting, they were able to make out the room.

Eugene's stomach tightened as he recognised the area, "The Arena," he whispered. This alone was enough to get Fetch on her knees, her tough exterior now replaced by a whimpering little girl who was repeatedly whispering 'no' to herself.

"Oh, Carter, you really did it." A familiar woman's voice echoed around the room. Carter turned her head around, looking for the source.

"I did exactly what you wanted me to do, now give me what you promised!" she shouted back into the air.

A silhouette appeared from one of the platforms, coat flapping as the person walked forward, "All in due time, my sweet. I have some catching up to do."

_Augustine_.

* * *

><p>AGH another chapter down! Sorry for the length, I just had to make sure I stopped it at just the right place and that everything that needed to happen, happened. Thanks to everyone for bearing with me while I write this! It's actually becoming so much fun now that I'm really moving away from the story. While I don't believe any of this could have actually happened, it's pretty cool to imagine occurring on the side.<p>

Again, thank you to everyone who Favourites, Follows and Reviews! You're efforts are and always will be incredibly appreciated! Until next time!


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